Hockey in Germany has been on the rise lately. The country won its first Olympic silver medal in the sport in 2018, which was also its first since 1976. In 2023, Germany won its first World Championship silver medal since 1953. It has helped that the sport’s popularity has also grown, with the country producing star players such as Leon Draisaitl and Moritz Seider.
While the 2026 Olympic team still only has a handful of NHLers, more and more talented players are making their mark on the tournament. This year it is JJ Peterka who is in the middle of a good first season with the Utah Mammoth. Representing Germany at the Olympic Games has of course always been a dream for Peterka. What hockey player doesn’t dream of playing in the Olympic Games?
Entering the quarterfinals, Peterka and Germany have a chance to make noise as underdogs. It’s a chance to give the country some attention heading into a quarterfinal match with an upstart Slovak team and a platform for Peterka to become a household name in his home country.
A German star on the rise
From the start, Peterka was excited to be named for the Olympics. Although he had competed in multiple World Championships, including in 2023 where he had 12 points to earn Germany silver, he had never had the opportunity to play with some of the best players like Draisaitl. That opportunity excited him from the moment he got the call.
“It’ll probably be pretty fun (playing with Draisaitl),” Peterka said. “Great player. Obviously I’ve talked to him a little bit, but not much yet. It’s a super cool opportunity as playing against him is always quite difficult and not the most fun thing there is. Being on the other side will be great.”
While Draisaitl is by far the best German hockey player in the world at the moment and will be a big weapon for the country in the quarter-finals, Peterka himself has also been a top name for some time. In his first season in North America in the American Hockey League (AHL), Peterka recorded 68 points in 70 games with the Rochester Americans. In the playoffs he took it to another level, scoring seven goals and scoring twelve points in ten games.
It took a season for the forward to adapt to the NHL, but Peterka broke out with the Buffalo Sabers during the 2023-24 season, scoring 28 goals and tallying 50 points in 82 games. His next season was even better with 68 points in 77 games.
Last summer, Peterka declined to sign an extension with the Sabers and was traded to the Mammoth. Halfway through his first season with the team, he is on a roll with 38 points in 57 games. He has also managed to improve his overall game, especially the defensive side of it, something that was constantly criticized in Buffalo.
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His past seasons in North America have seen him repeatedly invited to the World Championship. As said, Peterka won silver with Germany at the 2023 tournamentgood for 12 points in 10 games. Because of that experience, he has played with most of the German players before. However, the forward says the Olympics are a whole new level because each country brings its best players, unlike the World Championships where some NHL players are often missing due to the playoffs.
“I think the teams will be a lot more stacked if you compare it to World Championships,” Peterka said. “Because it always takes place every four years, it is also something more special. Overall, there are much more competitive expectations for your country when it participates in the tournament.”
Quarter-finals Expectations met, goal of winning a medal within reach
Expectations for Germany have been met. The expectation was that the team would reach the quarter-finals, and they did so on Tuesday a 5-1 win over Francesecuring a place in the next round and a date with Slovakia. Peterka played a role in the win, scoring a nice backhand goal in front of the net.
GERMANY 3-1 UP. 👀
Frederik Tiffels and JJ Peterka extend Germany’s lead in the #WinterOlympics play-off. pic.twitter.com/wKSt1Whkbj— NBC Olympic and Paralympic Games (@NBCOlympics) February 17, 2026
The goal was assisted by Tim Stützle, another German forward who has emerged as a great offensive player in the NHL. The two have found a great bond in the four matches Germany have played so far, with Peterka scoring three assists in the three round robin matches, each netting a Stützle goal. Their chemistry has shown that the line with Josh Samanski has really formed good chemistry, something Peterka wanted to see before the tournament.
“It’s a great challenge to play against so many good names,” Peterka said. “(I expect) us to develop as a team as the tournament progresses and to play a good, solid game of hockey.”
Although the expectation of being among the last eight countries at the Olympic Games has been achieved, the goal is to progress further. Germany will play Slovakia in one of the most intriguing matches of the quarter-finals. Slovakia is a team very similar to Germany. They don’t have a full NHL roster, but they do have some NHL individuals who are playing very well, especially Juraj Slafkovský, who has six points in three games.
Closing Slafkovský will be key for Germany to succeed and advance to the semi-finals. Peterka, who is expected to play key minutes in the game, will be relied upon not only for his offense, but also for his new defensive game. If Stützle and Peterka can outperform Slafkovský and Philipp Grubauer, who are expected to start, and keep the lead together in the net, the Germans, considered the underdogs, could hold on and pull off an upset.
Even if Germany falls prey to Slovakia, the country can take away a lot from the tournament. One of those things is that Peterka is a key factor for success at the Olympic Games in the near future. He has played well and is only 24 years old, which means he will probably be able to play in the next three, maybe four Olympics. Peterka’s chemistry with Stützle was also useful, something Germany could also utilize in the future.
German hockey players know how dangerous Peterka is offensively. They know how important he is for the current and future success of German hockey. A player like Julian Lutz, who was not part of the Olympic team this season but could very well be in 2030, predicted, knowing Peterka’s skill, that he would do well in his first Olympics, making Germany a fun team to watch.
“He’ll do some damage,” Lutz said. “It will be exciting to watch even if we’re not there.”
He was right. Peterka is third in points for Germany and leads the team in assists. He has shown that he is one of the best German hockey players in the world. On Tuesday he will get one of the biggest opportunities of his career, trying to help his country in turmoil, return to the semi-finals and continue the hunt for gold.
As mentioned, Peterka grew up watching old-school German players championing his country. Players like Marco Sturm and Christian Ehrhoff laid the foundation for hockey in Germany. Now Peterka continues what they built, becoming a role model for young hockey players in his home country and helping the sport grow as his country tries to make a deep run into the Olympics. It’s something he thinks his younger self would enjoy.
“I think I would be proud,” Peterka said. “I think that (making the Olympics) is always something I’ve dreamed of, especially when I look at Germany all the time. I think I would be super excited and happy.”
Tuesday’s match is a big match for Germany. If Peterka can continue his great play, his country could pose a threat for one of the medals, which shows how good hockey has become in the country. Even if they fall to Slovakia, it has been a great tournament for the Mammoth forward, something he dreamed of as a child.
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