The Winter Olympics are just weeks away, and hockey fans are buzzing everywhere. However, the excitement isn’t just limited to fans of actual hockey but also among fans of the hockey romance show, Heated Rivalry, that’s taken the internet by storm. In the show, Shane Hollander, one of the main characters (played by Hudson Williams), wears a white Team Canada fleece jacket at a fictionalized Olympics. And well, it didn’t take long for viewers to fall in love with it.

Fans started tagging Team Canada’s official social media handles, asking the same question online: “Will this ever be real merch?” Fans who looked into it discovered that the jacket wasn’t a piece of official Team Canada merchandise, leaving them sorely disappointed. But soon after came an important update.

Team Canada’s official social team dropped a hope-filled reply to fans’ demand: “Update HR fans.. our boss said maybe.” It wasn’t a yes, but it also wasn’t a no. And for a fandom, that one word, maybe, felt like a door opening just enough to let the light in before the Winter Olympics.

Prior to the viral reply, fans had already petitioned to show their seriousness in wanting to get this fleece. Hundreds of signatures were collected within a short time, and the fans did not stop there.

They shared links, tagged friends, and wrote comments about wearing the jacket to rinks, games, and even Olympic watch parties if it gets released.  The message was made clear – for Heated Rivalry fans, acquiring the iconic jacket was serious business.

And now, with the actual Canadian men’s hockey team about to lace up their skates to head to the 2026 Winter Olympics, fans have a different question: Can this team win the gold?

Canada’s NHL-packed roster sets the stage for Winter Olympics gold in 2026

Just recently, Canada unveiled its 25-man men’s hockey team for the 2026 Winter Olympics, and the excitement is palpable.

The roster unsurprisingly includes Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Sam Reinhart, and Brayden Point.

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Crosby is in the center of everything. He already has two Olympic gold medals from 2010 and 2014. He has appeared in more than 1,350 games in the NHL, captained the Pittsburgh Penguins in 18 seasons, and was a winner of three Stanley Cups.

Then comes the firepower. McDavid provides game-breaking and electric speed. He has hit 100 points in eight seasons in the NHL, was a league MVP, and led the Oilers to two Stanley Cup Finals.

MacKinnon is a strong forward with a Cup win as well as his own reputation of taking over the games when they count. It has already been shown that this group can emerge victorious. Most of these players are the ones who played in the 4 Nations Face-Off victory of Canada earlier this year.

The confidence around this team is not just emotional; it is backed by numbers, too. Recent betting odds put Canada at the top, giving them about a 42.5% chance to win gold, the highest of any country.

Canada has also shown in history how different the results are when NHL players are available. They won gold in 2002, 2010, and 2014, all with NHL talent. In 2018, they managed bronze, and in 2022, they missed the podium completely.

The return of NHL players brings Canada back into its most comfortable and strongest position, competing with the world’s best using the world’s best.

Canada sits in Group A with the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and France. The men’s hockey tournament runs from February 11 to 22.

On paper, this team looks ready. On ice, it looks even better. If they play the way they know they can, Canada has the skill, the leaders, the scorers, and the belief to win gold again.