Florida Panthers defenseman Uvis Balinskis and winger Sandis Vilmanis have been named to Team Latvia's 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic roster.
Balinskis, 29, will take part in his second Olympic Games, having played in four games and notched three assists for Latvia at the 2022 Olympics. Balinskis has plenty of experience representing Latvia on the international stage, donning that Latvian jersey at five separate World Championships. In those five tournaments, Balinskis has scored one goal and nine points.
Due to a significant injury to Dmitry Kulikov, Balinskis has found himself back in the Panthers lineup. He's skated in 32 games this season, scoring one goal and seven points while averaging 13:58 of ice time.
Vilmanis, 21, is skating in his second season with the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL. In 31 games, he's scored eight goals and 19 points, on pace to smash his rookie season numbers. The former fifth-round pick (157th overall) in the 2022 NHL draft has flown up the ranks within the Panthers' prospect pool.
Standing 6-foot-1, 192 pounds, Vilmanis plays a strong game, looking to utilize his shot whenever possible. He has previously represented Latvia at the World Junior Championship three times, scoring three goals and seven points in 16 games.
Latvia's roster:
Forwards: Rodrigo Ābols (Philadelphia Flyers, NHL), Rūdolfs Balcers (ZSC Lions, SUI), Oskars Batņa (Lahti Pelicans, FIN), Teodors Bļugers (Vancouver Canucks, NHL), Roberts Bukarts (HC Pioneers Vorarlberg, AUT), Kaspars Daugaviņš (Selber Wölfe Huskies, GER-2), Mārtiņš Dzierkals (HC Sparta Prague, CZE), Haralds Egle (HC Energie Karlovy Vary, CZE), Zemgus Girgensons (Tampa Bay Lightning, NHL), Renārs Krastenbergs (HC Olomouc, CZE), Ēriks Mateiko (Hershey Bears, AHL), Dans Ločmelis (Providence Bruins, AHL), Eduards Tralmaks (Grand Rapids Griffins, AHL), Sandis Vilmanis (Charlotte Checkers, AHL).
Defenseman: Uvis Balinskis (Florida Panthers, NHL), Oskars Cibuļskis (Herning Blue Fox, DEN), Ralfs Freibergs (HC Vítkovice, CZE), Jānis Jaks (HC Energie Karlovy Vary, CZE), Roberts Mamčics (HC Energie Karlovy Vary, CZE), Kristiāns Rubīns (HC Škoda Plzeň, CZE), Alberts Šmits (Jukurit Mikkeli, FIN), Kristaps Zīle (Bílí Tygři Liberec, CZE).
Goaltenders: Elvis Merzļikins (Columbus Blue Jackets, NHL), Kristers Gudļevskis (Pinguins Bremerhaven, GER), Artūrs Šilovs (Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL).
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