Blackhawks Prospects
Blackhawks Goalie Prospect Named To Slovakia Olympic Roster
It turns out that Teuvo Teravainen won’t be the only member of the Chicago Blackhawks to participate in the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics.
While Teravainen is still the only professional in the Blackhawks organization slated to make the trip to Italy in February, a top prospect will be joining him as part of Team Slovakia.
Chicago’s 2023 second-round pick (No. 35 overall), Adam Gajan, was one of three goaltenders named to Slovakia’s Olympic roster on Thursday. Gajan, 21, is currently in the midst of his sophomore season with the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he’s been among the top netminders in the country.
In 20 appearances for the Bulldogs, Gajan has the second-most wins in the NCAA with 14. Among all goaltenders with at least 15 games played, he has the fourth-best goals-against average (1.92). Gajan has also posted two shutouts and has a stout .919 save percentage on the season.
The Poprad, Slovakia native is set to become the 15th Bulldog to skate in the Olympics, and the first since Noah Cates (USA) in 2022. However, Gajan will become just the second goaltender in program history to be an Olympian, joining Bob Mason, who skated on the 1984 U.S. Team.
It’s been a remarkable turnaround in 2025-26 for Gajan, who struggled mightily in his first two years after being drafted by Chicago. In his final year of USHL action with the Green Bay Gamblers in 2023-24, Gajan had a shoddy 3.35 goals-against average and .893 save percentage, while going without a shutout in 43 appearances. Then, as a freshman last season with UMD, things didn’t go much better. Gajan had only seven wins in 21 games and posted a .885 save percentage.
Fortunately, Gajan was trusted enough to be handed the keys again as the starter, and he’s certainly made the most of that opportunity so far. He’s been a crucial piece of the Bulldogs’ success, as they currently rank as the fifth-best team in the nation. UMD is 14-6-0 through 20 games.
Gajan joins 29-year-old Stanislav Skorvanek and 24-year-old Samuel Hlavaj as the Slovakian goaltenders. Skorvanek plays for Hradec Kralove in the Czech Extraliga, while Hlavaj is in his second season with the Iowa Wild in the AHL.
The Men’s Olympic Hockey Tournament is set to begin on Feb. 11, just over one month from now. Juraj Slafkovsky, Simon Nemec, Dalibor Dvorsky, and Erik Cernak are the notable NHL players on Team Slovakia.
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