While they participated as part of the Canadian roster at the 4 Nations Face-Off last February, Flyers winger Travis Konecny and defenseman Travis Sanheim have been named to Team Canada’s Orientation Camp on the road to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano, Italy. The camp, consisting of presentations, team-building exercises, team meetings and media availabilities, will be held in Calgary and run from Aug. 26-28.
9⃣2⃣ players from 🇨🇦’s men’s, women’s and para hockey programs have earned invites to National Teams Orientation Camp in Calgary.
9⃣2⃣ athlètes de hockey masculin, de hockey féminin et de parahockey du 🇨🇦 iront au camp d’orientation des équipes nationales à Calgary.
— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) August 1, 2025
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The official list, recently released, sees Sanheim as one of 13 defensemen named to the camp that includes Florida’s Aaron Ekblad, Colorado’s Cale Makar and Devon Toews, Edmonton’s Evan Bouchard and Montreal’s Noah Dobson among others. Sanheim is actually the lone defenseman represented a team in the Metropolitan Division and one of only three (Dobson and Ekblad the other two) to be chosen from the Eastern Conference. In three games during the 4 Nations Face-Off, Sanheim had one assist and was a -1 overall in terms of plus/minus.
Getting the nod again for possibly representing Team Canada next February should be another boost to his confidence. Sanheim, who didn’t miss a game in 2024-25 for the Flyers, had eight goals and 22 assists for 30 points. While the offensive production dropped from 44 points to 30 last season, Sanheim was one of the steadier Flyers defensemen all season.
Meanwhile Konecny is one of 26 forwards named to the camp. And the list is oozing talent with Connor McDavid, Nathan McKinnon, Mitch Marner, Sidney Crosby, Brad Marchand, Macklin Celebrini and Mark Scheifele among others (including Tom Wilson, Quinton Byfield and Carter Verhaeghe). Konecny, who played two games in the 4 Nations Face-Off but was held pointless, is coming off a career high in points and assists with 76 and 52, respectively. Konecny’s goal production dropped considerably in the latter half of 2024-25, but it’s expected he’ll rebound next season, particularly with the addition of Trevor Zegras as well as Matvei Michkov now with a full season of NHL play under his belt. The Team Canada roster is rounded out by three goaltenders including St. Louis keeper Jordan Binnington, who backstopped Canada in their victory over the U.S. in the 4 Nations Face-Off final.
If there was one slight disappointment, it might have been whether the list would’ve included Tyson Foerster as a dark horse for the team. Foerster played for Canada during the World Hockey Championships but his status to start the season remains in doubt. Foerster underwent surgery to his elbow to resolve an issue stemming from an infection he got during the World Hockey Championships last spring. A healthy Foerster might have been a long shot to make this upcoming camp, but it would’ve been a nod to his progress and development.
Nonetheless, it’s a little tip of the hat to both Konecny and Sanheim who should be in the mix for two of the roster spots. And they’ll also know they’ll be seeing new Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet as an assistant coach under Jon Cooper as part of the Canadian coaching staff. The NHL is returning to the Winter Olympics for the first time since the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.