Though he didn't hear his name called to Team Canada's 25-man Olympic roster on Wednesday, Matthew Schaefer is just one injury away from potentially heading to Milano Cortina 2026.
The 18-year-old New York Islanders defenceman revealed on Thursday that he's one of the players on Canada's injury-replacement list.
"I'm ready if I ever get the call," the rookie said to NHL.com's Stefen Rosner on Thursday after the Islanders' 7-2 loss to the Utah Mammoth.
Schaefer, along with Connor Bedard, Sam Bennett and Mark Scheifele, were among the notable names left off Canada's initial roster.
"It's an honour when your name is in the running for the Olympics and for Team Canada, your country," Schaefer said to reporters Thursday when asked about not making the team.
Canadian general manager Doug Armstrong said leaving Schaefer off the roster was not an easy decision.
"I'll be honest, he wasn't on my radar at the start of the season," Armstrong said Wednesday on Real Kyper and Bourne. "His play is exemplary. As I said, I don't want to spend a lot of time talking about players who didn't make the team, but to me, this is a special occasion because he's an 18-year-old man we're talking about playing in the Olympics.
"He's a fantastic talent, he brings you out of your seat every night. He's got maturity beyond his years, on and off the ice. I was shocked at how quickly he worked his way into our conversations, and that's a credit to him. The Islanders are very lucky and hockey is very lucky to have a young player like that coming onto the horizon."
Schaefer is leading the scoring among rookie defencemen this season, collecting 25 points (10 goals, 16 assists) in 41 games while averaging 23:52 on ice — the most of any first-year NHLer.
Canada's first game of the Olympic tournament is Feb. 12 against Czechia.
