There's no shortage of Vegas Golden Knights representation for the 2026 Winter Olympics. You have your Americans (Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin) and your Canadians (Mark Stone, Mitch Marner, and Shea Theodore). Heck, there's even a Danish player involved for the Golden Knights in Jonas Rondbjerg!
But you can also add Tomas Hertl to the mix. The Prague native will represent the Golden Knights as he joins Team Czecha for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Congratulations to Tomas Hertl on being named to Team Czechia for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games! 🇨🇿 #VegasBornhttps://t.co/hxoOih9jcA
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) January 6, 2026
Hertl has 15 goals and 15 assists this season with the Golden Knights. He's also anchoring the NHL's seventh-best power play (24.4%) with seven goals and five assists on the unit. Last season, he set a franchise record for single-season power play goals with 14, establishing a new norm for the Golden Knights.
Believe it or not, Hertl isn't the only noteworthy player on Team Czechia. He joins a loaded roster that's the proverbial dark horse to win Olympic gold this year. I know, I can't believe it either.
But when Team Canada, the United States, and Sweden are your only viable competition, there's a reason why they're a dark horse. Here's how Hertl can make that happen for Team Czechia in the Winter Olympics.
How Tomas Hertl will help Team Czechia while representing the Vegas Golden Knights
First, any squad that features Martin Necas and David Pastrnak to join Hertl automatically makes them a noteworthy team. Karel Vejmelka, Lukas Dostal, and Dan Vladar also constitute a formidable goaltending room, making them a legit dark-horse. While the blue line isn't as great as the Czech Republic would hope, that's not too much of a concern if you can score goals.
But looking at Hertl, he's still a surprisingly good two-way center. He skates well and can cover the ice without too much trouble. That alone should help the Czech Republic on the back end, making them tougher to attack.
Of course, you have your stereotypical Hertl-isms, ranging from giving the Czech Republic a presence in the bumper to sheer goal-scoring power. The Winter Olympics will be on notice when Team Czechia is on the power play, where players like Necas can simply find Hertl in the slot.
That should be a win-win for a dark-horse team looking for an Olympic gold medal. Let's not forget that the Czech Republic won a gold medal at the 2024 IIHF World Championship without Hertl's size and offensive presence. Things should look up for the Olympic squad this season, especially if the Czech Republic goes on a deep run.
With all the disappointing news surrounding Golden Knights stars such as Shea Theodore going down, this latest bit surrounding Hertl is a breath of fresh air. It gives fans hope that the team is properly getting represented. Let's just hope that everyone gets out of Milan unscathed.