For the first time in program history, UConn men’s hockey will have a former player in the Olympics. On Friday, Tage Thompson was named to the USA Hockey team for the 2026 Milano Cortina Games.
“We are extremely proud of Tage for being named to USA Hockey Olympic roster,” head coach Mike Cavanaugh said in a release. “Tage’s journey from his time at UConn to the world stage speaks to his commitment to the game. He earned everything that’s come his way, and he’s a tremendous representative of UConn hockey
and USA Hockey. We’re extremely proud of him and excited to watch him compete at the highest level.”
Thompson played for the Huskies from 2015-17, recording 33 goals and 31 assists during that time. As a sophomore, he found the back of the net 19 times, which stood as the program’s single-season record during the Hockey East Era until Joey Muldowney surpassed him with 29 last year.
In 2016, Thompson became the first UConn player taken in the first round of the NHL Draft, going 27th overall to the St. Louis Blues. He appeared in 41 games with the organization in 2017-18 before getting traded to the Buffalo Sabres that offseason. In 2021-22, Thompson broke out with a 38-goal, 30-assist campaign then put up 94 points the following season. This year, he has 20 goals and 17 assists in 39 games.
Thompson has represent the US on numerous occasions throughout his career. At the youth level, he played for the US National Team Development Program prior to college then won gold with the Americans at the 2017 World Junior Championship. Thompson has competed at three World Championships (2018, 2021, 2025) and, this past summer, scored the game-winning goal to lift Team USA to its first standalone world championship since 1933 and first major tournament crown since the 1996 World Cup.
Beyond that, Thompson participated in the 4 Nations Face-Off last winter with the red, white and blue.
The US will aim to win its first Olympic gold medal since 1980 — the Miracle On Ice. The Americans have the talent, though they’ll likely need to go through arch-rival Canada to get there. They’ll kick off the games against Latvia on Feb. 12, followed by Denmark on Feb. 14 and Germany on Feb. 15.
Thompson might not be the only Husky at the Milano Cortina Games. Adam Huska has a shot to make Slovakia’s roster and even appeared on an NHL.com projection last year.
UConn women’s hockey had two players compete for China in the 2022 Olympics: Tia Chan and Camryn Wong.
