Jon Cooper’s championship-winning staff from 4 Nations returns for 2026 Olympics

By Canadian Press on July 21, 2025.

CALGARY — After leading Canada to victory at this year’s 4 Nations Face-Off, head coach Jon Cooper is getting his same support staff for the Milan-Cortina Olympics.

Hockey Canada announced Monday that Bruce Cassidy of the Vegas Golden Knights, Rick Tocchet of the Philadelphia Flyers and former Dallas Stars coach Peter DeBoer will once again serve as assistants on Cooper’s staff for the 2026 Winter Games.

Former Stars assistant and Hockey Canada vice-president of hockey operations Misha Donskov returns as an assistant coach, while goaltending consultant David Alexander, director of performance analysis James Emery and video co-ordinator Elliott Mondou round out the staff.

The group led Canada to victory at the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off, the first international tournament to have league participation since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Connor McDavid scored in overtime as Canada beat the United States 3-2 in Boston to win the tournament, which replaced this season’s NHL all-star weekend.

The men’s Olympic hockey tournament runs Feb. 11-22 in Milan, Italy. Canada won its third gold medal in four Games the last time NHL players participated in the Olympics in 2014.

“After a successful 4 Nations Face-Off, I am excited to welcome Bruce, Peter, Rick, Misha, David, James and Elliott back to Canada’s coaching staff for 2026 Olympic Winter Games, as this is a highly skilled group of coaches that bring impressive resumés to our staff,” Cooper said in a release.

“This group of coaches will provide consistency and a winning pedigree to our team, and I know our players will greatly benefit from this world-class coaching staff.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 21, 2025.

The Canadian Press