Logan Thompson didn't look any worse for wear when he made his return from a four-game absence on Thursday night, making 27 saves to help the Washington Capitals beat the Nashville Predators, 4-2, in both teams' final contest before the Olympic break.
The 28-year-old was dialled in from the get go, helping the Caps bank two critical points in the Eastern Conference playoff race. The scene now shifts to Milan, Italy, where the Calgary native will join Team Canada in its quest to win gold later this month.
“It’s a dream come true,” Thompson said after the victory, per NHL.com's Tom Gulitti. “I’m going to just go there and soak it all in and do any role that they want me to be. Whether that’s practice goalie, backup, handing out the water bottles, I’m just going to be happy to be there and I’m going to do whatever I can to the best that I can.”
Thompson will be doing a lot more than handing out water bottles; he should battle St. Louis Blues' Jordan Binnington and Los Angeles Kings' Darcy Kuemper for the starting job.
He's been the best out of the three this season, putting together a 19-6-4 record along with a 2.45 goals-against average, a .912 save percentage and two shutouts.
Although he has struggled as of late — to the tune of a 1-4 record with a 3.27 GAA and .884 SV% over his last five — Thursday's triumph was huge for him to shake off the rust before the flight to Italy.
“Yeah, obviously, I wanted to play all of these games,” Thompson said, per Gulitti. “I unfortunately wasn’t able to, but, yeah, it’s important to get this one before the break and feeling good and confidence going into this big tournament.”
Logan Thompson, Team Canada kick things off on Feb. 12
Although Binnington's performance at the 4 Nations Face-Off last February will probably earn him the starting nod for Canada's first game against Czechia on Thursday, Feb. 12, it won't be a long leash.
If he stumbles, both Thompson and Kuemper will be ready to pick up the slack, and the former has been the more consistent of the two throughout the 2025-26 campaign.
“Man, I give him a lot of credit because he’s worked the last three or four days,” Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery said of his star netminder. “They give him the green light medically, and for him to play like he did tonight when we needed it most, and now going over to Italy, you just think about him going over there and feeling really, really confident and good about his game as he goes into a tournament with the best players in the world.”
Team Canada is a powerhouse and will be looking to defend the gold medal from the last time NHL players were eligible to participate back in 2014.
Canada beat Sweden in the gold medal game in those Olympics, and 12 years later, Thompson will be a key part of the roster looking to continue establishing ice hockey dominance in Milano Cortina.
