Almost one year ago, Brad Marchand was selected as one of the First Six roster members for Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off alongside Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Brayden Point. 

This year, Marchand was left off the initial roster when Hockey Canada announced the First Six for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan, Italy. The 37-year-old was replaced by Florida Panthers’ teammate Sam Reinhart as the only change made from the announcement of the 4 Nations roster.

Despite not being a part of the initial team announcement, Marchand says representing Canada at the Olympics remains a goal of his.

“Look, it’s the highest achievement you can have as a Canadian-born player, to be part of Team Canada. So yeah, it’s obviously a goal and something I’m going to shoot for,” Marchand told NHL.com.  “Obviously, that’s next year’s task and one of the goals on the docket. Obviously, there are a million players who could play on that team. Canada is so deep and has a tremendous amount of talent, so it’s going to be an uphill battle.”

Marchand has made a compelling case to once again represent Canada in a best-on-best tournament with his outstanding run in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The veteran has scored 10 goals and 20 points in 22 games and has the Florida Panthers on the verge of winning the Stanley Cup for the second-straight season. The Halifax, N.S., native has scored six goals in five games in the Final against the Edmonton Oilers and is a strong contender to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.

Marchand has presented Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off, the World Cup of Hockey in 2016-17, the 2016 World Hockey Championship, and at the World Juninor Championships.

Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong said he spoke with Marchand about the decision and told him he will have every chance to make the Olympic team, which is set to begin the tournament on Feb. 11. 

“I talked to him just last week about how impressed we all are about how he’s playing,” Armstrong told NHL.com. “He’s playing fantastic. “And he certainly, as I said to him, has every opportunity to make the Olympic team.

“He’s doing what we asked all the guys to do -- when the lights are the brightest, whether it’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, World Championships, whatever it may be, we want to see how guys perform. And he’s performing well above par right now.”

In an interview with The Athletic, Armstrong said Reinhart was selected for his 200-foot game and the poise he showed in a top-line role at the 4 Nations.

“What we saw at the 4 Nations: Sam is just a well-balanced player who can touch every aspect of our team,” Armstrong said. “There was no question he was going to be on our team. He was just a natural selection now (in June) based on his play and his history of great play in big events.’’

Reinhart, a native of West Vancouver, B.C, scored 39 goals and 81 points in the regular season and has added seven goals and 19 points in 20 playoff games 

“I mean, (Reinhart) was always going to be on that team; he’s an incredible person and player,” Marchand said of his teammate.