Eriks Matieko Named to Team Latvia for 2026 Winter Olympics

January 6, 2026

Hershey Bears forward Eriks Mateiko has been named to Team Latvia for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation announced today. It is the first time that Mateiko, a prospect of Hershey's National Hockey League affiliate, the Washington Capitals, will represent his home country at the international multi-sport event.

Mateiko, 20, is in his first season of professional hockey, and has produced five points (1g, 4a) in 25 games with the Bears. Mateiko is the first active Bear to be named to an Olympic roster since Chris Bourque represented the United States at the 2018 edition of the tournament held in PyeongChang, South Korea.

The native of Jelgava, Latvia has previously represented his homeland in international competition at the International Ice Hockey Federation's World Junior Championship in 2025 and 2024. In 2025, he served as an alternate captain for Latvia while tallying five goals in five games to tie for fourth in tournament goal-scoring.

Before beginning his professional career, Mateiko played three seasons in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League with the Saint John Sea Dogs and Rimouski Océanic, generating 120 points (65g, 55a) in 158 games.

Mateiko was a third-round selection (90th overall) of the Washington Capitals in the 2024 NHL Draft, and was signed by the Capitals to a three-year, entry-level NHL contract on Sept. 27, 2024.

The men's hockey tournament at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, which will be the first Olympics to feature NHL players since 2014, will begin on Feb. 11 and will conclude with the gold medal game on Feb. 22.

The Bears continue the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, when they host the Cleveland Monsters on Saturday, Jan. 10, at 7 p.m. at GIANT Center for Country Night and Pepsi Cowboy Hat Night, featuring a Bears cowboy hat giveaway for the first 6,000 fans in attendance. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets for this game.