Could Scott Wedgewood’s incredible start earn him a spot on Team Canada? ‘It’s really cool just to be in the conversation’

Maybe there is still time for Scott Wedgewood’s great start to become a storybook tale.

Wedgewood’s star turn has been one of the most surprising developments at the start of the 2025-26 NHL season. The goaltender has helped the Colorado Avalanche to the top of the league standings.

But what if this could lead to something bigger — like, say, a spot on Canada’s 2026 Winter Olympics team?

“Hoping for it, obviously. I don’t know how it all works,” Wedgewood said. “It would be something cool. It’s really cool just to be in the conversation. … Just thinking about being a Canadian kid growing up and all that stuff, it was everyone’s dream.”

Wedgewood leads the NHL with 13 wins. He leads all qualified Canadian goalies in save percentage (.918) and goals against average (2.09).

While this is the most exposure Wedgewood has ever received in his career, the quality of his play has not just come out of nowhere. It’s the quantity that has changed.

Wedgewood’s .909 save percentage since the start of the 2021-22 season is third among Canadian goalies with at least 100 NHL games played, behind only ex-Avs netminder Darcy Kuemper and Logan Thompson, who are both at .912. Even if we take out the red-hot start to this season, his save percentage from the past four seasons is .908 and tied for fourth among Canadian netminders, with Adin Hill (.909) jumping ahead of him.

“The truth of it is, if you asked anybody in the summer, they’d laugh at you, right?” Wedgewood said. “But I think the things that I’ve really built with my game are very high-end. The ability that I have, the awareness, the situational positioning, all that stuff I do at a high level — I just haven’t had the opportunity to consistently put that on display.”

The issue is Wedgewood’s never played more than 37 games in a season, and until the start of this year, he’s never had the chance to show he can handle the workload of a No. 1 goaltender. He’s played in 131 games since the start of the 2021-22 campaign, with 117 starts.

That said, he is 26-5-3 in 36 games since joining the Avalanche, with a .918 save percentage and a 2.04 GAA. He’s proven he can excel in situations where he faces a lot of shots, and when the Avs are dominating, and he has to wait for the scoring chances against him. His reputation as a great locker room presence preceded his arrival in Denver.

Jordan Binnington, who backstopped Canada in February to a Four Nations Face-Off win, has 219 starts since 2021. He also led the St. Louis Blues to a Stanley Cup in 2019 and now has the Four Nations tournament on his resume as well.

Scott Wedgewood is enjoying his moment, and the Avalanche can’t stop winning during it

Still, one reason beyond Wedgewood's play that has even entered the conversation is the lack of strong play from other Canadian candidates. Binnington is almost certain to make the team, but he's sporting an .880 save percentage and has the fourth-worst goals saved above expected, according to MoneyPuck, in the NHL this season.

One of the three goalies worse than him is Montreal's Samuel Montembeault, who was the No. 3 goalie at Four Nations. The No. 2 guy, Hill, has completed three NHL games this season because of injury.

There have been reports that Canada had a group of eight to 10 goalies in consideration for the Olympics, which will take place in Milan, Italy, in February. Wedgewood said Tuesday that he has not been contacted by Hockey Canada, and he has not been asked to start the drug-testing process required by the IIHF to be eligible.

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported last week that Islanders rookie sensation Matthew Schaefer had just started that process. That Wedgewood hasn't been asked does not disqualify him, but it's not clear when the deadline would be.

The deadline for choosing the team is Dec. 31, and the rosters are expected to be announced in early January. The Canadian and American teams for the 2014 Winter Olympics were announced at the 2014 Winter Classic on Jan. 1.

"They’re not making any decisions just yet. They have time," Avs coach Jared Bednar said. "It’s not just your play on the ice. It’s not just your play on the ice. It’s what you bring to the room, the intangibles, the acceptance of a role. Lots of guys have their roles change when they go there."

Other goalies who could be in consideration include Thompson, who has had back-to-back strong seasons with the Washington Capitals, and Kuemper, who has played much better the past two seasons since joining the Los Angeles Kings. Another guy who, like Wedgewood, is probably a long shot at this point, but has been on Hockey Canada's radar, is the other half of "The Lumberyard" -- Mackenzie Blackwood.

He has only played four games for the Avs this year, but he's represented Hockey Canada before. If his shutout Saturday in Nashville is the start of his own hot run, he could sneak back into the mix as well.

The odds for Wedgewood may not be high, but that's never bothered him before. Counting him out has become a bad idea.

"I feel like I can help," Wedgewood said. "I can do what I do for this team for anybody. It’s how I pride myself with the day-to-day. If it becomes an option, they know what they’re going to get."

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The post Could Scott Wedgewood’s incredible start earn him a spot on Team Canada? ‘It’s really cool just to be in the conversation’ appeared first on Denver Post

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Could Scott Wedgewood’s incredible start earn him a spot on Team Canada? ‘It’s really cool just to be in the conversation’