USA Hockey announced today the preliminary roster for its 2026 U.S. Men’s National Team that will compete in the upcoming IIHF Men’s World Championship, to be held May 15-31 in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland. 

“We’re excited about our group,” said Brett Peterson on the USA Hockey’s website. Peterson is the general manager of the 2026 U.S. Men’s National Team and assistant general manager of the NHL’s Florida Panthers.

“We’ve got a good blend of players that are excited about representing our country and competing for a gold medal,” he added. “We’re looking forward to the tournament and know Switzerland will be a great host.” 

Olivier, who was born in Biloxi, Mississippi, started his NHL career with the Nashville Predators during the 2019-20 season. He was traded to Columbus in the summer of 2022. Prior to last season, the Blue Jackets signed him to a six-year extension after he recorded 18 goals and 14 assists in the 2024-25 campaign, both career highs.

In the 2025-26 season, Olivier missed 21 games due to injury, but still posted 15 goals and 11 assists. Known as one of the toughest players in the NHL, he has amassed 479 penalty minutes in his seven-year career, more than half of those (240) in his last two seasons in Columbus.

Also on the U.S. preliminary roster is former Ohio State Buckeye Mason Lohrei. Lohrei, who played for the Scarlet & Gray in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, is now a defenseman for the Boston Bruins. It was already announced that Blue Jackets goaltender Jet Greaves has been named to the Team Canada roster.

Team USA will train in Mannheim, Germany, starting May 8 and play a pre-tournament game there against Germany on May 10. The U.S. will open play in the IIHF Men’s World Championship in Zurich on May 15 against host Switzerland at 8:20 p.m. local time/2:20 p.m. EDT. All U.S. games in the tournament will air live on NHL Network.