Imports in international hockey can be a very touchy subject. The passion one feels for their home country makes international hockey great. Understandably, the feeling can be diminished when teams feature plenty of players who are not from the same home. There are import success stories in hockey, like Hnat Domenichelli in Switzerland or John Murray for Poland. Both players found a second home in these two cases and were ingrained in the hockey culture before repping the country. There are also cases of teams loading up on hockey mercenaries who are paid to boost a national team but don’t connect with that country’s culture. This was most prevalent with team China loading up on random North Americans ahead of the 2022 Olympics, many of whom left the team right after the event. 

The Winter Olympics for 2026 are scheduled to be held in Italy. While Italy is not a hockey hotbed, they are a fringe World Championship team, often bouncing between the Elite and Divison 1 Group A. The country has understandably tried to find solid imports to boost their odds for the Olympics at home. This has come with mixed results. Under former New York Rangers head coach Mike Keenan, the team added eight North American imports for the 2023 D1A World Championship. Even with the North American players, they finished third in the group, missing out on promotion to the top. In the 2024 tournament, a new Canadian coach and five more new imports saw them finish third once again. Italy is bound to the imports they can attract to their ICEHL team or home league. Neither is among the top leagues in Europe and with IIHF rules requiring at least 16 months in a country, it will be hard for Italy to find top-level talent among imports. Unless there is a rule change to imports.

Confirmed by several sources: The NHL is eager to allow their players with Italian ancestors to play for Italy at the Olympics. That would mean bypassing the 16-months-rule that players have to play in Italy to be eligible. We will see what the IIHF has to say about this…

— Bernd Freimueller (@bfreimueller) December 11, 2024

Altering IIHF import rules may be someting the National Hockey League is interested in doing. Austrian hockey writer Bernd Freimueller reported, “The NHL is eager to allow their players with Italian ancestors to play for Italy at the Olympics.” This rule change would have to be done by the IIHF, not the NHL. However, with negotiations about NHL players in the Olympics are constantly ongoing, if the NHL wanted to promote more of their players in small hockey countries, they could push for the change. Plenty of sports are much looser with their import rules regarding the international game. See the World Baseball Classic, which allows teams to pick players from former parts of a kingdom or territorial claims. The Netherlands added MLB players, including Andrelton Simmons, Kenley Jansen, and Xander Bogaerts, to their lineup. 

I would not be a fan of this change to international hockey. It may be an ironic take from the American with Polish roots that covers Polish hockey. Still, I don’t think international hockey should be decided by a few countries getting lucky with diaspora in hockey hotbeds. But I do wonder what team Poland looks like under this system. I created a roster with the idea that any player with Polish roots,that I could confirm, was eligible unless they had already represented their birth country. For example, a player like John Tavares could not represent Poland as he has already played for Canada at various IIHF events. I also was not claiming any players eligible for Poland but had already chosen to represent another country, so no Wojciech Stachowiak, who represents Germany.  

Forwards

Krystian Dziubinski (THL) – Mark Jankowski (NHL) – Andrew Poturalski (AHL)  

Carsen Twarynski (AHL) – Jonny Brodzinski (NHL) – Bryce Brodzinski (ECHL)

Dominik Pas (THL) – Carson Gicewicz (ECHL) – Easton Brodzinski (ECHL)

Paul Ludwinski (AHL) – Kamil Walega (Tipos Extraliga)  – Patryk Wronka (THL) 

Extra: Krzysztof Macias, Alan Lyszczarczyk

The offense was complicated to build as I quickly leanred how many marquee forwards with Polish roots had already represented Canada or the USA. The significant pick-up is Mark Jankowski. The former first-round pick is a veteran of just under 400 NHL games and stands at 6’4. The squad gets a second NHL pick-up in New York Rangers center Jonny Brodzinski, an offensive standout in the American Hockey League (AHL). The other AHL standout the red and white gain is Andrew Poturalski. While he only has six NHL games to his resume, he has 446 points in 493 AHL games. Poturalski previously put up 124 points during the 2022 AHL season, and on European ice, he would likely be Poland’s offensive leader. We returned to the Bordzinski family to add Jonny’s brothers, Bryce and Easton, who are point-per-game ECHL players. Carsen Twarynski is a good grinder who would help Poland against some tough matchups; he also has European hockey experience, playing a year in the ICEHL. Last to mention is the young 20-year-old Paul Ludwinski, a second-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks and in his rookie AHL season. 

I could have added a few more ECHL players, but I wanted to keep as many Polish-born players as possible. Captain Dziubinski stays at the top, and I believe he could keep up with his NHL and AHL linemates even at 36. Dominik Pas will play some big penalty-kill minutes and shift around the lineup wherever Poland needs the defensive matchup. Wronka is too fun to watch to take out of the lineup, while I believe Walega could succeed in the ECHL if given the chance. Macias would likely battle Ludwinski for chances, while Alan Lyszczarczyk could swap in for any of the ECHL players. 

Defenseman 

Dennis Cholowski (NHL) – Andy Welinski (DEL)

Nolan Zajac (DEL) – Mateusz Zielinski (THL)

Bartosz Ciura (THL) – Luke Witkowski (SHL)

Karol Bilas (THL) – Ben Zloty (ECHL) 

Cholowski is the big pickup on defense, as the former first-round pick is starting to find a home with the New York Islanders. Andy Welinski, a long-time AHL defenseman who also appeared in 46 NHL games, will be his partner. That top line would have to play a lot of minutes for Poland, as the other pairings are best used situationally. Nolan Zajac also joins the squad. He is a strong two-way defender with plenty of European hockey experience, and desperately needed for the powerplay. Physical defenseman Luke Witkowski brings some big hits and lots of leadership. Witkowski served as an AHL and NCAA captain for four years. Defensive prospect Ben Zloty has a name so money he had to make it. The 22-year-old has bounced between the AHL and ECHL but is over a point per game at the ECHL level this year. 

We only had three defensive spots for Polish players, and I picked one veteran and one young player for the first two spots. For the last, I went with who would fit best with Zajac. Mateusz Zielinski is a player I am a massive fan of, and I think he is key to the national team’s next defensive core. I believe his two-way play will fit right in with Zajac. Bilas is one of Poland’s best young players and has only been slowed down by injuries recently. Ciura is a staple of the national team, and it’s a shame he missed the World Championship last year after suffering an injury versus Latvia. The entire lineup will appreciate his sturdy stay-at-home style. 

Goalies

John Murray (THL)

Tomas Fucik (THL)

Maciej Miarka (THL)

This might be surprising to some, but I’m not adding any goalies. There is no NHL goalie to add. Anthony Stolarz was considered, but he played a single game for Team USA at the IIHF level. There were some ECHL players, but honestly, Poland struck gold in their two import goalies they got through the current IIHF imports rules. Murray has taken Polish hockey to new heights with his stellar player, and I believe Fucik can do the same. Miarka, born in Łódź, will be the next starter after Murray and Fucik are done. The 23-year-old looked great in his first start against Ukraine this year. 

Italy and Great Britain would jump ahead of Poland if every country got to play by these same rules. But Poland would move past Hungary and Kazakhstan. It likely means Poland is a squad that more often competes in the top level of the IIHF but is still not a permanent member. That situation is a lot better than waiting 22 years to reach the top again. If this system were in place long-term, Poland could eventually grab the next Polish North American star, such as John Tavares or Joe Pavelski. It could also bring the sport to a new level of popularity in Poland, where imports would no longer be required.

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