Lars Eller added another chapter to his incredible hockey career.
The former Capital captained Denmark to an appearance at the 2026 Winter Olympics after his home country defeated Norway 4-1 on Sunday.
Norway took an early lead — 26 seconds in — thanks to Mats Zuccarello scoring on a rebound and quieting a raucous crowd at Aalborg Arena in Denmark. But the Danes weathered the storm and responded in the second period.
Danish winger Nicklas Jensen (no relation to Nick Jensen) scored twice, including the eventual game-winner, late in the second period to give Denmark a 2-1 lead heading into intermission.
Eller could be seen sporting a big smile after the victory. The center tied for the Group F lead in points, posting four points (2g, 2a) in three games and registering a plus-minus of plus-5.
Denmark defeated Great Britain 3-1 and Japan 3-2 earlier in the tournament. They went undefeated in their Olympic Qualifiers (2 wins, 1 overtime win), finishing at the top of Group F with eight points.
Martin Fehervary’s Slovakia and Latvia will join the Danes at the Olympics after winning Group D and Group E respectively.
Slovakia, Denmark and Latvia are heading to the 2026 Olympic Games in Milano Cortina.💪
Read full Olympic Men's Final Qualification recap at ➡️ https://t.co/a3saaRfqXE@hockeyslovakia @dkishockey @lhf_lv pic.twitter.com/XwBR8A9McV
— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) September 1, 2024
“Good job boys,” Fehervary said, congratulating his Slovak teammates on his Instagram Story. Fehervary did not play in the qualifiers due to injury.
Denmark, Slovakia, and Latvia completed the field of 12 teams competing for medals in Milano Cortina. The other nine teams include Italy which will participate as the host country as well as Canada, Finland, Russia, the United States, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and Czechia via their final 2023 IIHF World rankings.
Russia’s participation is not yet confirmed and is contingent on the team being allowed to return to IIHF events. Both Russia and Belarus have been prohibited from competing since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. France will join the field if Russia’s ban continues.
