Who to Watch: Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2026 Olympics

We are under a week away from the NHL players playing in the Olympics in Milan, Italy. It’s been over a decade since the NHL last participated in the Olympics, with the last time being in 2014 in Sochi, Russia. The 2025 4 Nations Face-Off was a mere preview of what fans are going to witness in this international best–on–best tournament starting on February 11th.

As the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to decide whether to retool or push for the playoffs, Leafs fans have three players representing their respective countries at the Olympics. Captain Auston Matthews for Team USA, William Nylander for Team Sweden, and Oliver Ekman–Larsson also for Team Sweden.

Let’s take a look at how these players have played this season and where they will slot in on their respective teams in the Olympics.

Auston Matthews

When Auston Matthews was selected to play for Team USA, I don’t think anyone was shocked. The three-time Maurice “Rocket” Richard winner can obviously put the puck in the back of the net. Furthermore, he enters the Olympics on a hot streak, scoring 11 goals and eight assists in the month of January.

Matthews has shown himself to be a good two-way centre. It’s no coincidence that since Craig Berube took over as head coach, he heavily utilizes Matthews in the defensive zone. This season, he has spent 41.8% in the offensive zone and 40.8% in the defensive zone. Almost equal. Matthews is also 4th in NHL forwards in shot blocks with 68, and can kill penalties.

Up front, Team USA is pretty balanced in terms of scoring and defence. Bill Guerin likely wanted this balance, which is why he likely snubbed both Jason Robertson and Cole Caufield. Matthews is projected to start on the second line, centring Matt Boldy and Jake Guentzel. Both Boldy and Guentzel are playing well, with Guentzel bringing his “high stakes” reputation. In the 4 Nations, Guentzel scored three goals and an assist in four games. 

Matthews will likely be on the first power play unit, which will probably reunite him with Jack Hughes, with whom he played with at the 4 Nations. But unlike at the 4 Nations, Team USA is going to rely on Matthews to do more than play exceptional defence. They are going to need him to score goals. Matthews only recorded three assists in three games at the 4 Nations. 

While he missed a game due to a minor injury, he seems healthier of late. There is no higher stage than the Olympics, and it’s an opportunity for Matthews to shake his “anti-clutch” persona with a good performance.

William Nylander

Like Matthews, no one was surprised that William Nylander was selected by Team Sweden in the initial roster selection in June 2025. Nylander loves to represent his country at every opportunity. In 2023, the Leafs played two regular-season games in Sweden, and Nylander was the star of the show. He scored two goals and three assists over these two games, including the overtime winner in the second game to cap it all off.

Last season, Nylander scored a career high of 45 goals and finished second in NHL scoring behind Leon Draisaitl. However, at the 4 Nations, Nylander was quiet offensively. Over the three games, he had just two assists and did not find the back of the net. Sweden finished with a 1–0–2–0 record.

This season, he’s having a “down year” in goal scoring, with only 18 goals in 40 games played. However, on a bad Leafs team this season, and despite injuries sidelining him for the longest stretch of his career, he still leads the team with 52 points. He is still a cornerstone of offence for the Leafs.

On Team Sweden, he was projected to start on the first line with Jesper Bratt, and centre Leo Carlsson. Leo Carlsson has 18 goals, 26 assists for 44 points in 44 games. He is one point shy of his career high of 45 points in 32 fewer games. However, Carlsson had surgery in January and is ruled out for the Olympics.

Along with Jonas Brodin being ruled out due to injury, this has dealt a big blow to any attempt that Team Sweden had in winning Gold at the Olympics. But the best part about hockey is that anything could happen. William Nylander could turn it on and play lights out as he did leading into the Olympics. Either way, like Team USA is counting on Matthews to score, this goes double for Team Sweden and Nylander.

Oliver Ekman–Larsson

If at the start of the year you placed a bet on Oliver Ekman–Larsson being named to Team Sweden, you probably would’ve won a lot of money. He last represented Sweden in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, where Sweden lost to Canada in the finals. However, Ekman–Larsson was 22 years-old. Currently, Ekman–Larsson is on the back half of his NHL career. However, this season, he has probably been one of the consistent positives on an otherwise unremarkable Leafs team. 

In 57 games with the Leafs this season, Ekman–Larsson has scored eight goals and 26 assists for 34 points. Over 82 games, he is on pace for 11 goals and 37 assists for 48 points. This would put him on pace for his second-best NHL season. His best season was with the Arizona Coyotes in 2015–16, where he scored 21 goals and 34 assists for 55 points. This was 10 years ago. 

When named to Team Sweden, he was projected to be a replacement player. However, with the injury to Brodin, he is likely to see games, probably on the third pair. This will likely be the last time in his career that he will represent Sweden at the international level. It’s nice to see Ekman–Larsson rewarded after the season he is having.

But what do you think about the three Leafs in the Olympics? Will any one of them stand out? Let us know in the comments below!