Men’s hockey began on Wednesday (Feb. 11), and it was a big moment as NHL players stepped onto the international stage at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan, Italy. For the St. Louis Blues, this is also a big moment, as five players on their roster will be making their first appearance as Olympians, hoping to shine for their nations. However, in the spirit of the Games, let’s look back at the top Blues’ players from the 2014 Winter Olympics.
David Backes
The Blues didn’t have many heavy-hitting players at the Olympics that year, but based on the numbers, David Backes stands out as the top option. He was one of Team USA’s top goal scorers in the tournament with three goals and a notable point producer with four points.
Related: Blues Week Ahead: Schedule & Storylines – Olympic Break Edition
Before heading to Sochi, Russia, in 2014, Backes was rolling through the 2013-14 season with 42 points through 52 games. Of those points, he had 20 goals and was also responsible for much of the Blues’ scoring before the Olympics, finishing third on the team in goals.
While 2014 wasn’t Backes’ first Olympic Games, making an appearance with Team USA in 2010 in Vancouver, he made the most of this one in production. However, that was not enough for Team USA, as they failed to beat Team Finland in the bronze medal game, finishing fourth in the tournament. Instead, the biggest story of Backes’ last Olympics was, oddly enough, him bringing back a couple of stray dogs.
T.J. Oshie
I think any American hockey fan, not just Blues fans, can remember how iconic T.J. Oshie was to Team USA in the 2014 Olympics. Not only did he record four points in six games, but he also had an outstanding shootout performance against Russia in the preliminary round, securing a 3-2 win for the USA on Russian soil.
Because Olympic shootout rules allow the same player to be reused after the first three attempts, Team USA was keen to use Oshie as a key shootout player, and he scored on four of his six attempts. However, it was the shootout goal in his final attempt that secured the win over Russia, and Oshie’s contribution to this victory was noticed across the United States.
USA forward T.J. Oshie shoots and scores a goal past Russia goalkeeper Sergei Bobrovski in the overtime shootout in a men’s preliminary round ice hockey game during the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games (Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports)
Let’s not forget Oshie was climbing the NHL scoring charts with 46 points in 57 games during the 2013-14 season before the 2014 Olympic Games. He was second on the Blues in points before the Olympics that season.
Alexander Steen
The 2013-14 season was an incredible year for Alexander Steen, as he recorded a career-high 62 points in 68 games and was part of a Swedish national team that nearly won gold in Sochi. Steen, who made his only Olympic appearance in 2014, was a top-four contributor to Sweden.
In six Olympic tournament games, Steen had four points. His three assists in that tournament were also crucial, as one of them set up Erik Karlsson for the winning goal against Finland 2-1 in the semifinal and helped push Sweden to the gold medal game.
Sadly, they lost 3-0 to Canada, but Steen left Sochi with some hardware: a silver medal and at least something to show for what was his only and final Olympic appearance. But his experience with the Swedish national team didn’t stop there.
More recently, Steen was named player personnel consultant for the Swedish national team by director Anders Lundberg, and will hopefully continue to contribute even greater results for Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Honorable Mentions
While acknowledging the Blues players with strong stats, some players weren’t as stat-padded as those above, who still performed well at the 2014 Olympics. Two of which were on the gold medalists, Team Canada. Those players were Jay Bouwmeester and Alex Pietrangelo. Both of them played extremely disciplined, poised hockey in the tournament and helped solidify their bottom defensive pairing, giving Canada the gold medal.
Now, with a new era of Blues making their debuts at the Olympics this year, they will all have the opportunity to add to the list of top performances by Blues players.
