Goalie to try and help his country earn a spot at the 2026 event
The Carolina Hurricanes' 2024-25 opening night remains over a month away, but Frederik Andersen will be playing meaningful games next week.
Carolina's netminder will play for his home country of Denmark from August 29 - September 1 as they attempt to qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
Competing against Norway, Great Britain, and Japan, Denmark will vie for their second-ever Olympic appearance in ice hockey, having made their debut in 2022. The host nation of the four-team tournament, Denmark is scheduled to play Great Britain on Thursday, August 29, before taking on Japan on Friday, August 30. Group F competition will wrap up on Saturday, September 1, when Denmark faces Norway.
The 34-year-old netminder is one of six NHL players on Denmark's roster for the event, joined by Oliver Bjorkstrand (Seattle), Nikolaj Ehlers (Winnipeg), Lars Eller (Pittsburgh), Jonas Rondbjerg (Vegas), and Mads Sogaard (Ottawa).
Eight countries have already qualified for ice hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics, including host Italy, and the top nations based on the 2023 IIHF World Rankings – Canada, Finland, United States, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and Czechia.
