25 ice hockey players will represent Italy at the home Olympics in Milan.

Including 6 South Tyroleans: This is Italy's Olympic squad

After a long wait and much speculation, Italy's ice hockey team has been selected for the Milan Olympics. The roster includes a few surprises.

20 January 2026

From: fop

The cat's out of the bag! A total of 25 ice hockey players will represent Italy at the Olympic Games in Milan in February – including six from South Tyrol. These are Damian Clara (Reischach), Gianluca Vallini (Bolzano), Alex Trivellato (St. Jakob/Leifers), Daniel Glira (Toblach), Tommy Purdeller (Montal) and Diego Kostner (St. Ulrich).

“We paid attention to the players’ character when making our selection. It’s important that everyone plays at a high tempo, hard, and fights from the first to the last minute,” explained Italy’s star coach Jukka Jalonen, justifying his choice. The players who stayed home could still, according to the Finnish coach, make a case for themselves for the World Championship in May. One thing is certain: Jalonen will have to send one of his three goalkeepers and two field players from his 25-man squad to the stands for the Olympics.

"It is important that everyone plays at a high pace, plays hard and fights." Coach Jukka Jalonen

Gianluca Vallini will likely take the goalkeeper position. The 32-year-old from Bolzano, a reliable backup for years but recently sidelined with a long-term injury, has been given preference over Rudy Rigoni and Jakob Smith. However, at the Olympic Games, Damian Clara, the Swedish export from Puster Valley, and Davide Fadani, who plays in Switzerland, are expected to alternate between the posts.

Daniel Glira has reason to be happy: He's going to Milan. © Lehtikuva / MIKKO STIG

Thomas Larkin and Phil Pietroniro were guaranteed starting positions in defense. They are joined – unsurprisingly – by Alex Trivellato, HCP players Luca Zanatta and Greg Di Tomaso. Daniel Glira won the South Tyrolean battle for a roster spot against Ritten's DEL star Peter Spornberger. The Bolzano-based Italians Jason Seed and Dylan DiPerna complete the roster.

11 Italians on board

In total, eleven of the Azzurri's 25-man squad hold dual nationality, most of them playing in attack. Pustertal players Mikael Frycklund and Nick Saracino have made the squad, as have Bolzano natives Dustin Gazley, Matt Bradley, Daniel Mantenuto, and Cristian DiGiacinto. Alex Petan from Olimpija Ljubljana has also been added. The attack is spearheaded by Diego Kostner, Tommaso De Luca, Alessandro Segafredo, Giovanni Morini, and Marco Zanetti, all of whom play in Switzerland.

HCP youngster Tommy Purdeller and HCB veteran Luca Frigo are also expected to play a key role. Young South Tyroleans Julius Ramoser and Pascal Brunner, who had long hoped for an Olympic berth, will not be participating.

As a reminder: The Blue Team will play in Milan starting February 11th against the Swedes, Slovaks, and Finns, whose teams are packed with NHL players. The top teams from each of the three Olympic groups, as well as the best second-place team, will qualify directly for the quarterfinals. The remaining eight teams will compete in a qualifying round for the final four quarterfinal spots.

This is Italy's Olympic squad:

Tor
Defense
Attack
On call: Jacob Smith (Angers), Rudy Rigoni (Asiago), Peter Spornberger (Ingolstadt), Enrico Miglioranzi (Bozen), Terrance Amorosa (Herning), Gregorio Gios (Asiago), Alex Ierullo (Pustertal), Matthias Mantinger (Pustertal), Pascal Brunner (Bozen), Bryce Misley (Bozen), Julius Ramoser (Wolfsburg), Daniel Tedesco (Glasgow).