It’s that time of the year when the 2026 Winter Olympic teams are being announced. It’s had many hockey fans up in arms about the snubs and who made the cut instead. The headache the Olympics and international hockey have to deal with is the Russian team. Because of the war in Ukraine, the nation is banned from play, and it’s rough for hockey fans knowing a good percentage of the talented players will miss the coming Olympics.
It only leaves us to speculate. What would the Russian team look like? How good is the team, and can it win Gold? With this in mind, this is a good time to put on a GM hat and put together a Russian team. The forward lines and defense pairs are subjective, but overall, the depth chart shows an intriguing team that makes fans only speculate about what it could do on the international stage.
Forwards
Give or take, these are the four lines Russia rolls with.
Kirill Kaprizov – Evgeni Malkin – Nikita Kucherov
Alexander Ovechkin – Ivan Barbashev – Artemi Panarin
Matvei Michkov – Pavel Buchnevich – Ivan Demidov
Dmitry Voronkov – Yakov Trenin – Valeri Nichushkin
At first glance, this looks like a forward group that can score four or more goals per game. The skill is unquestioned from Kaprizov and Kucherov on the top line to Demidov on the third line. Ovechkin and Malkin provide the scoring but also are the veterans who have played international hockey before. That top nine makes any hockey fan wonder what the upside is on the offensive zone with all the skill and talent, especially on the wings.
The but question is whether they have the centers who can keep up, and can this group defend? A lot of pressure would be placed on Trenin to center a line despite still finding his footing in the NHL. Plus, the bottom six in general aren’t as strong. It’s what makes a power forward like Dmitry Voronkov a valuable addition to the fourth line.
Defense
This is where the Russians might have some issues.
Mikhail Sergachev – Artem Zub
Vladislav Gavrikov – Ivan Provorov
Nikita Zadorov – Alexander Nikishin
(Pavel Mintyukov)
The first issue is that the Russians don’t have an elite two-way defenseman. Cale Makar is in Canada, Quinn Hughes is on the USA team, and Sweden has the likes of Victor Hedman and Erik Karlsson making their mark at the point. The best Russian option in that regard is Sergachev but he’s not the defenseman who takes the offense to the next level (Nikishin might someday but he’s still young and developing his offensive upside).
The other problem is that they have too many left-sided defensemen. The Russians’ best options all play the same side, and aside from Provorov and Zub, they’ll ask someone to play their weak side. This group might allow a lot of scoring chances. But hey, it might not matter much if the forwards can pile on the goals and the goaltender is elite.
Goaltending
This is the toughest position to choose. There are four viable options for the starting net and a few NHL-caliber starters who won’t even make the cut because of how stacked they are in the net. Anyone can make a strong argument for any of the names below.
- Andrei Vasilevskiy
- Igor Shesterkin
- Ilya Sorokin
- Sergei Bobrovsky
So, if the Russians had to pick two, who starts and who is the backup? Based on reputation, the starter would be Bobrovsky, who started in the 2014 games. He’s a proven winner, and his play in the big games has shown that he can outduel anyone when needed, which is what is wanted for international play. Shesterkin would likely be the backup because, among the four, he is the best goaltender at the moment, having recently won a Vezina Trophy and played in the top tier of the NHL in recent years. We’re splitting hairs here but this duo is the best for the Russians, who have an embarrassment of riches in the net.
How Would The Russians Fare?
This group is in the elite tier with the other nations competing for Gold. The skill would keep them in any game, and the goaltending can make a big stop or steal a game or two. The intrigue is how they’d match up against Canada, Sweden, or the USA. The talent will allow them to cruise past the preliminary stage but the tournament is where things get interesting.
That’s probably where the Russians would hit a wall. All three nations have a defense that can stunt their forwards and can win up the middle. Canada, particularly, can roll three lines led by Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Sidney Crosby to take over the games. So, Russia might not win Gold but they would probably be in the medal conversation or close to it.
