U.S. Olympic Men’s Hockey Team Adds 15 NCAA Players
The final Olympic roster revealed Thursday includes 15 current NCAA players from nine college hockey programs. Eight professional players from European leagues and two players from the American Hockey League fill out the rest of the team.
"We're fortunate to have a deep talent pool," said John Vanbiesbrouck, the team's general manager, "and with the mix of players who are part of our team, we're looking forward to competing for a gold medal in Beijing."
This is the second straight Winter Olympic men's hockey tournament without NHL player participation. The U.S. roster in the PyeongChang Olympics was also a mix of professional players that weren't under NHL contract and college players. The Americans went 1-1-1 in pool play before losing in a quarterfinal shootout to the Czech Republic.
NCAA Players On 2022 Olympic Roster
Forwards
Nick Abruzzese, Harvard
Matty Beniers, Michigan
Brendan Brisson, Michigan
Noah Cates, Minnesota Duluth
Sean Farrell, Harvard
Sam Hentges, St. Cloud State
Matthew Knies, Minnesota
Marc McLaughlin, Boston College
Ben Meyers, Minnesota
Nathan Smith, Minnesota State Mankato
Defensemen
Brock Faber, Minnesota
Drew Helleson, Boston College
Nick Perbix, St. Cloud State
Jake Sanderson, North Dakota
The U.S. men's team is coached by David Quinn, former head coach of the New York Rangers.
The NHL opted out of the 2018 Olympics in South Korea due to financial disputes with the International Olympic Committee and a lack of desire by NHL team owners to shut down the regular season without concessions from the IOC and the NHL Players Association.