The winner takes it all at the final Olympic qualification tournament in Gavle, Sweden. And by all, we mean the coveted spot at the 2026 Olympics in Milan. The hosts enter the Group H tournament as favorites, but can’t get complacent against Denmark, Norway, or the Netherlands. Let’s take a closer look.
 

Sweden

Not only are the Swedes the highest-ranked team in the tournament, but playing on home ice, they just may be on their way up in the rankings.
 
In goal, head coach Ulf Lundberg has the PWHL Boston Fleet’s Emma Soderberg, 25, and Ida Boman, 21, from Djurgarden. Both have shown that they can carry a team even at the highest international level. The Swedish defence will be built around the New York Sirens’ Maja Nylen Persson, who will also quarterback their power play, and a strong stay-at-home defender in team captain Anna Kjellbin from the Montreal Victoire.
 
Offensively, Sweden has enough firepower to win the group. There’s Kjellbin’s teammate Lina Ljungblom, who leads Sweden in scoring this season. There’s power forward Elin Svensson, who’s one of two Swedish-born players in the Top 10 in SDHL scoring. And don’t sleep on Frolunda’s Sofie Lundin. You can also expect goals from two talented 18-year-olds, Hilda Svensson and Isabelle Leijonhielm. Meanwhile, Lisa Johansson is a reliable sniper who returns to the national team after a two-season absence.
 
All in all, the Swedes certainly have enough big-game experience to punch their ticket to Milan.

Denmark

The Danes are one of those bubble teams that go back and forth between the top division and Division I. This year, they’re back in Division I, working hard to earn promotion again. And qualifying for the Olympics would be just the boost the game needs in Denmark.
 
When Denmark qualified for the 2022 Olympics, marking its first appearance ever, their then-coach Swedish Peter Elander famously noted that of all the female players in the country, 10 percent were in the Olympics. Today, there are 800 female players in the country, so only three percent will be in Gavle for the qualification tournament.
 
Goaltending is always vital, and here Denmark’s in good shape. Caroline Bjergstad who plays in the US, is a solid candidate for the number one position. So is Emma-Sofie Nordstrom, if available. She has posted an impressive 95.0 save percentage at the St. Lawrence University in the NCAA.
 
Nordstrom’s cousin Amelie Andersen will be a key player on the blue line.
 
The Danes know they have a good defence. It’s putting the puck in the net that’s been an issue. The Danes lost all three games in the Four Nations tournament in December. Hungary beat Denmark 2-1, and Japan shut them out (3-0) as did France (1-0), making Lilli Friis-Hansen, who plays for Rodovre in the Swedish Division I, the team’s leading scorer with just one goal. Nicoline Söndergaard Jensen, 32, has seven seasons – and 146 points in 230 games – in the Swedish SDHL under her belt, so it’ll be important for her to find the net.

Norway

Even though Norway is ranked 14th in the world, the team did earn a promotion to the top division last season. Even if the Norwegians don’t qualify for the 2026 Olympics, the Gavle tournament will give them a good chance to prepare for their first top-division appearance since 1997.
 
Coincidentally, 1997 is also the year team captain Mathea Fischer was born. She missed the first half of this season due to a knee injury and while the power forward has only logged half a dozen games, the good news for coach Andre Lysenstoen is that she’s just hitting her stride and has no signs of fatigue. Fischer finished 15th in SDHL scoring last season.
 
The leading Norwegian scorer in the Swedish league is Fischer’s teammate Emma Bergesen, with 18 points in 29 games. The mobile defender will be an asset for Norway’s power play.  Another weapon for Norway is Frolunda’s Andrea Dalen, who, at 32, still knows how to score goals.
 
Goaltender Ena Nystrom may be only 24, but she’s also in her 12th season. Nystrom and Bergesen were teammates at Ontario Hockey Academy Tardiff. The longtime Mercyhurst goalie posted an impressive 95.8 save percentage at last year’s IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship Division I Group A and has taken over as the starter with the SDHL’s Brynas.
 
Norway has upset potential.

The Netherlands

How about the Netherlands? They played their way to the final qualification by winning their Round 3 group in December in Sheffield. The Dutch team allowed only one goal in three games, and despite only scoring five times, it was enough to win all three games. The Netherlands shut out Spain 2-0 and host Great Britain 1-0, as well as beating Latvia 2-1.
 
The team’s leading scorer was Kayleigh Hamers, a defender, and another SDHLer (and a teammate of Norway’s Fischer and Bergesen and Sweden’s Johansson to boot). She scored twice and added an assist, while Aimee Seppenwolde and Savine Wielenga scored the other three goals.
 
Wielenga netted the biggest one of them all: the overtime winner against Great Britain.
 
The pace of the game will be leveled up in Gavle, and while the Netherlands is a long shot to go all the way to Milan, it would be foolish to dismiss this team completely. Goalie Eline Gabriele allowed only one goal on 61 shots in Sheffield, and she proved herself in the Finnish league last season, posting a respectable 91.6 save percentage in 16 games for HPK.
 
The Netherlands will have to rely heavily on their Stockholm connection of Hamers and Julie Zwarthoed, supported by their former SDE teammates Wielenga and Maree Dijkema.