Former NHLer Daugavins named captain of Latvia’s men’s Olympic hockey team
The on-ice leaders for one of the intriguing underdogs heading into the men’s ice hockey tournament in Milan have been named.
On Tuesday, it was announced that former NHL forward Kaspars Daugavins has been named the captain of the Latvian men’s team at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Florida Panthers forward Uvis Balinskis and Tampa Bay Lightning forward Zemgus Girgensons have been named as alternates.
Latvijas izlase izdarījusi izvēli C - Kaspars Daugaviņš A - Uvis Balinskis A - Zemgus Girgensons
Daugavins’ tenure in the NHL might not have been long, playing parts of three seasons with the Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins from 2010 to 2013. Yet, he’s been a national team regular for close to 20 years. Along with playing for Latvia in three of the past four Winter Games, the Riga native has represented his country at 13 editions of the IIHF Men’s World Championship, serving as captain in each of the past three tournaments.
The 37-year-old has posted two assists in 12 Olympic contests. At the Men’s Worlds, he’s the all-time leading Latvian scorer, posting 23 goals and 26 assists for 49 points in 65 games. He helped lead the team to a bronze medal at the 2023 World Championship.
Balinskis was part of that bronze-medal team almost three years ago, which was a promising precursor to him joining the Panthers organization the following season. The Ventspils native also played for Latvia at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, where the team finished 11th.
Girgensons hasn’t played as much at the Men’s Worlds, but has been a part of Latvia’s efforts to qualify for the Olympics in each of the past two cycles. Along with playing for Latvia, the last time NHLers were allowed to participate in 2014, the fellow Riga native has played at the Men’s Worlds four times.
Lativa has competed in four of the five tournaments in the “NHL Era” of the Winter Olympics. The team famously made it to the quarterfinals at the 2014 Sochi Games, narrowly losing to the eventual gold medalists, Canada.
Latvia will open its Group C schedule on Feb. 12 against the United States at 3:10 p.m. ET.