Right now Canada arguably has the best men's hockey roster on the international stage, from multiple time MVP’s, to future Hall of Famers, they have it all, and it looks like it is only going to continue to grow over the next four years or so. Since the 2014 Winter Olympic games in Sochi, the world has been deprived of best-on-best hockey, and the rosters this year definitely didn’t disappoint, but it is even crazier to think that this is just the beginning.
When you have guys like Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Sidney Crosby, and Cale Makar all combining on a line of their own it is hard to imagine having anything better, and with a lot of fans already talking about this Canadian team being the best of all time, it is almost impossible to believe it could get any better, but it can.
Over the past three years, Canada has seen three first overall picks, Connor Bedard in 2023, Macklin Celebrini in 2024, and Matthew Schaefer in 2025. They have had countless amounts of success in birthing young generational talent over the years, but the 2020s for sure seem like the most successful of them all, and the future holds some extremely bright prospects who could be wearing that maple leaf on their chest as soon as 2030.
Already having star young talent like Matthew Schaefer and Connor Bedard not making the Olympic team this year, that in itself shows how stacked the Canadian team will look in four years time, and with some of the games yet to even enter the NHL, the team looks set to introduce some real talent in the coming years. We have already seen a taste of some of Canada’s best prospects so far at the World Juniors over Christmas, the likes of Gavin McKenna, Keaton Verhoeff, and Porter Martone being only a few of the notable names, and despite coming out of the tournament unsuccessful it gave us more than a good outlook on what the team could look like in years to come, and how powerful they will continue to grow as a hockey nation.
It goes without mentioning that their respective countries like the United States, Sweden, and Finland all have solid prospects in the pipeline, but no other country looks to have the young powerhouses like Canada, and in terms of depth, nobody has it like Canada. With another projected first overall pick pending next year in Gavin McKenna, it is hard to suggest he won’t make the roster in 2030 given how promising he looks, and as for guys like Verhoeff and Martone, they have every chance as well.
This year Canada was definitely spoiled for choice, leaving guys like Connor Bedard off the team is an instant indicator of how powerful and deep their nation's roster is. Their 2026 Olympic team could go down in history as one of the greatest hockey teams of all time, but this may not even be the appetizer for what is to come in due course. Young superstars evolving, and elite older company still hanging around, the future looks good for Canada, and with how many young talents they are churning out, other nations will have a hard time keeping up.