Matthew Schaefer’s World Championships Decision Reflects His Commitment To Improving For Islanders
Matthew Schaefer will not play for Canada at the 2026 World Championships, a decision that highlights where his priorities are.
Throughout Monday, I was gathering information on which New York Islanders would be representing their countries at the 2026 World Championships in Switzerland, which begin May 15.
First, it was Mathew Barzal committing to Canada.
Then came Simon Holmstrom and Emil Heineman suiting up for Sweden.
Naturally, the next question was when — not if — we’d hear about Matthew Schaefer.
The morning after the season ended, Schaefer kept things open-ended:
“Yeah, I haven’t really talked about that much yet,” Schaefer said. “But it’s definitely a possibility… I’m still focused on the game last night, so yeah, there’ll be more talks about things like that.”
By Monday night, the answer came.
Schaefer will not be playing for Canada, sources told The Elmonters.