The 2026 Hlinka Gretzky Cup is currently taking place in Edmonton from Aug. 3–8, with some of the best U18-level players in the world representing their countries, giving fans and scouts an early look at some of the top NHL Draft-eligible talent.

The tournament debuted in 1991 and has had several names over the years, including the Phoenix Cup, the Junior World Cup, and the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, before changing its name to the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2018. Along the way, six current Oilers had the opportunity to represent their countries, and here’s a look back at their tournament runs.

Oilers defenceman Mattias Ekholm suited up for Team Sweden at the 2007 Ivan Hlinka Tournament, which was held in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Then just 17 years old at the time, Ekholm manned the blue line for Team Sweden, which also had former Oilers Anton Lander and Magnus Pääjärvi on the roster. Sweden went undefeated in the preliminary round and faced Team Finland in the gold-medal game, where Ekholm made his biggest contribution.

The blueliner scored the opening goal of the gold-medal game, and while both teams exchanged goals, Finland tied the game late to force overtime. But Victor Hedman emerged as the hero, scoring the OT winner for Sweden to win the gold medal.

Ekholm finished the tournament with two points (one goal, one assist) in four games and a team-high +5 plus/minus rating.

One year before being drafted first overall by the Oilers, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was selected to represent Team Canada at the 2010 Ivan Hlinka Tournament after coming off a season with the Red Deer Rebels that saw him win the WHL Rookie of the Year award after tallying 65 points in 67 games.

The 2010 tournament was held in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, where Nugent-Hopkins played a big offensive role for Team Canada. He scored a hat trick in the preliminary round against Team Switzerland in a 7–3 victory, and when Canada faced Team USA in the final, Nugent-Hopkins scored the lone goal of the game in a 1–0 win to help his team win the gold medal.

After winning, Nugent-Hopkins talked with CHL.ca about stepping up his leadership, saying, “I wanted to be a leader and help the team get through it and take it all in.” He added, “I managed to produce some offence for the team, and was pretty happy about that, too.”

Nugent-Hopkins led Team Canada with seven points (five goals, two assists), and his five goals were tied for the tournament lead.

Defenceman Connor Murphy was selected to play for Team USA at the 2010 Ivan Hlinka. There, the D-man got an early view of Nugent-Hopkins’ skill as their countries met in the gold-medal game. Murphy had a front-row seat to watch his future Oilers teammate score the only goal of the game, as Team Canada won the gold, while Murphy and Team USA took home the silver.

Overall, Murphy had a solid tournament, as the then-17-year-old led all American blueliners with four points (one goal, three assists) in five games. His lone goal was a pivotal one, scoring the overtime winner off an end-to-end rush in the semifinal against Team Sweden, lifting the U.S. to a 5–4 victory and advancing them to the gold-medal game.

Defenceman Evan Bouchard was selected to represent Team Canada at the 2016 tournament, which was held in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Canada was looking for its ninth straight gold medal at the Ivan Hlinka, but its historic streak came to an end that year. The Canadians won only one game in the preliminary round and were forced to face Team Finland in a game for fifth place, though they finished on a high note with a 4–3 win over the Finns.

Max Comtois led the Canadians with five points in four games, while the 16-year-old blueliner, Bouchard, played in all four games but went pointless. Also, fun fact: this was the first time Bouchard played with former Oiler Ryan McLeod, who he would later play with for parts of three seasons in Edmonton.

Oilers forward Vasily Podkolzin was selected to represent Team Russia at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, the first year the tournament moved away from its previous name, the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament. The event was held in Red Deer and Edmonton, AB, and Podkolzin was also named team captain.

Podkolzin was unstoppable throughout the tournament. The rugged Russian scored in every game and saved his best hockey for when the medal was on the line, scoring a hat trick in the bronze-medal game against the United States.

The captain led the tournament with eight goals and tied for the scoring lead with 11 points in five games, putting together one of the most dominant performances in the tournament’s 35-year history.

Podkolzin’s powerful performance, where he showcased his leadership, used his body to protect pucks throughout the tournament, and scored in big moments, helped boost his draft stock, leading the Vancouver Canucks to select him 10th overall in the 2019 NHL Draft.

The 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup was held in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and the Oilers’ newly acquired defenceman Shakir Mukhamadullin was selected to represent Team Russia, where he manned the blue line.

Russia was a force through the preliminary rounds and advanced to the semifinals, where they took on Team Finland, winning 4–1 and advanced to the gold-medal game against Team Canada.

In the gold-medal game, Canada outshot the Russians 37–13, but netminder Yaroslav Askarov was the difference-maker, helping Russia secure a 3–2 win and capture the gold medal.

Mukhamadullin didn’t light up the scoresheet at the tournament, but the then-17-year-old defenceman was solid on the blue line for Team Russia. He played in all five games, recorded an assist, and helped shut down some of the world’s top U18 talent on the way to Russia’s first tournament title since 1995.

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