Home / Sports / Injury Bug Hits NHL: Stars Miss 2026 Winter Games
Injury Bug Hits NHL: Stars Miss 2026 Winter Games
4 Feb
Summary
- Tampa Bay's Anthony Cirelli and Buffalo's Luukkonen are out.
- Sam Bennett and Joonas Korpisalo have replaced injured players.
- Several other NHL stars' Olympic statuses are uncertain.
The 2026 Winter Olympics are facing significant player disruptions as several prominent NHL stars have been sidelined due to injuries. Anthony Cirelli, a center for the Tampa Bay Lightning, will miss the games after being injured in a recent match. He has been replaced on Team Canada by Sam Bennett, a forward for the Florida Panthers.
Further complicating the rosters, Buffalo Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has also been ruled out for the Olympics. Bruins goalie Joonas Korpisalo has been named as his replacement. Several other NHL Olympians are currently sidelined with injuries, leading to uncertainty about their availability for their respective national teams.
Previously, injuries led to replacements for Seth Jones (USA), Jonas Brodin and Leo Carlsson (Sweden), and Rodrigo Abols (Latvia). The status of other key players like Jack Hughes (USA), Brayden Point and Brad Marchand (Canada), Gabriel Landeskog and Elias Lindholm (Sweden), and Martin Necas and Pavel Zacha (Czechia) remains uncertain as they deal with their injuries.
