There will be 12 teams in the men’s competition at the 2026 Winter Olympics and, for the first time since Sochi in 2014, NHL players will be allowed to compete for their countries.

Eight countries have already booked their places, with hosts Italy joined by the top nations based on the 2023 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) world rankings – Canada, defending Olympic champions Finland, United States, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland and Czech Republic.

Russia competed as the Russian Olympic Committee at the last Games in Beijing – and won the silver medal – but they, and Belarus, are currently banned for the 2024-2025 season.

The IIHF cited security reasons because of the war in Ukraine and has set a deadline of May 2025 for its ruling council to decide whether Russia and Belarus can return in time for the 2026 Olympics.

Should Russia be allowed, they would qualify as the ninth country to participate, based on the world rankings.

The final three spots will be decided at three separate events taking place this weekend.

Apart from Great Britain’s event in Demark, there are also final qualifiers in Slovakia and Latvia.

In Bratislava, hosts Slovakia face Kazakhstan, Austria and Hungary, while hosts Latvia play France, Slovenia and Ukraine in Riga.