Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - A pair of Buffalo Sabres forwards are set to attend the U.S. Men's Olympic Orientation Camp, starting next week Tuesday in Plymouth, Mich.
USA Hockey announced its roster of 44 players invited to its Orientation Camp for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy on Tuesday, which includes Sabres forwards Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch.
Thompson is making a push to earn a roster spot with the United States at the Winter Olympics after being snubbed from the 4 Nations Face-Off roster this past February.
This past season saw Thompson rebound with the Sabres after a bit of a down season the year before, putting up 44 goals and adding 28 assists for 72 points in 76 games played.
The 27-year-old then decided to go overseas and participate with Team USA at the IIHF World Championship in Denmark and Sweden, where he produced six goals and three assists for nine points in 10 games played.
It was Thompson's heroics in the Gold Medal Game against Switzerland that helped the U.S. to its first gold medal in the tournament since 1933, as he scored the game-winning overtime goal in a scoreless contest to give the Americans the win.
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In his time playing internationally representing the United States, Thompson has won a gold medal at the IIHF World Championship, the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2017, and the IIHF U-18 World Championship in 2015.
He's also won a pair of bronze medals with Team USA at the World Championship in 2018 and 2021.
As for Tuch, it may be more of an uphill battle for him to secure a roster spot on the U.S. roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
His 2024-25 season with the Sabres was also a bounce-back campaign after a down year before, scoring 36 goals and adding 31 assists for 67 points in 82 games played.
The 29-year-old last represented the United States at the international level at the 2023 IIHF World Championship, where Tuch contributed five goals and three assists in 10 games played. However, the U.S. came up short of a medal in the tournament, losing out to Latvia in the Bronze Medal Game.
Tuch has also represented Team USA at the junior level, playing on the 2015 World Juniors roster and also winning gold for the Americans at the 2014 IIHF U-18 World Championship.
Earlier this summer, USA Hockey announced its first six members of the 2026 U.S. Men’s ice hockey team, including forwards Jack Eichel (Vegas Golden Knights), Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs), Brady Tkachuk (Ottawa Senators) and Matthew Tkachuk (Florida Panthers), as well as defensemen Quinn Hughes (Vancouver Canucks) and Charlie McAvoy (Boston Bruins).
All six of these players are slated to also be in attendance for the Olympic Orientation Camp, though he two-day gathering is largely an administrative and team-building event with no formal on-ice activity or public component.
Meanwhile, a total of five players participating in this camp have already represented Team USA at the Olympic level, including South Buffalo native Patrick Kane (Detroit Red Wings). The other four players are forward Matthew Knies (Maple Leafs) and defensemen Ryan McDonagh (Tampa Bay Lightning), Brock Faber (Minnesota Wild) and Jake Sanderson (Senators).
The final 25-man roster for Team USA is expected to be announced in early January.
Earlier this month, Hockey Canada announced its 42-man roster for its Olympic Orientation Camp, which did not include anyone from the current Sabres roster.
The only Sabres player that has been already selected to play in the 2026 Winter Olympics is captain Rasmus Dahlin, who will represent his home nation of Sweden.
The 2026 Winter Olympics begin Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, with the men's ice hockey tournament beginning on Wednesday, Feb. 11.
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