MILAN, Italy – Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team dropped a 2-1 decision in overtime to the United States on Sunday to bring home a silver medal from the 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

After the Americans took an 1-0 lead early in the first period, Devon Toews (Abbotsford, BC/Colorado, BC) took advantage of a broken play off a faceoff and found Cale Makar (Calgary, AB/Colorado, NHL), who netted the equalizer with less than two minutes remaining in the second. The score remained deadlocked at 1-1 through regulation before the Jack Hughes beat Canadian goaltender Jordan Binnington (Richmond Hill, ON/St. Louis, NHL) 1:41 into the extra frame. Binnington was stellar in net, turning aside 28 shots, including an incredible glove save in overtime.

“We asked our group to come into this tournament and grow as a team, and we came here to play six games and get better each game. I did not think we could play better than we did against Finland, and these guys proved me wrong today,” said head coach Jon Cooper (Prince George, BC/Tampa Bay, NHL). “I thought it was a flawless performance by a group of players that did nothing but bleed red and white for three-plus periods of hockey, and I could not be more proud of this group. Unfortunately it was not meant to be for us today, but our guys were exceptional.”

Following the gold medal game, Connor McDavid (Newmarket, ON/Edmonton, NHL) was named Most Valuable Player, Best Forward and a media all-star after leading the tournament in scoring with 13 points (2-11—13) in six games. Makar and Macklin Celebrini (Vancouver, BC/San Jose, NHL), who was second in tournament scoring with 10 points (5-5—10), were also named to the media all-star team.

“I am disappointed, and obviously it is not fun when you lose regardless of how it happens. I feel for the entire group, because the guys played incredible,” said captain Sidney Crosby (Cole Harbour, NS/Pittsburgh, NHL). “It is tough to digest the loss this quickly, and obviously the thought [of potentially not having another Olympic opportunity] crossed my mind. It was unfortunate that I was not able to be out there tonight, but I give a lot of credit to the guys.”

“It is special any time you get to be in the room with a group like this, but it is obviously disappointing to lose,” said Celebrini. “We did everything that we wanted to do in the game, but we did not bury our chances and unfortunately it did not go our way. We will remember this feeling for a long time.”

A full game summary game be found at HockeyCanada.ca.

Canada finished the preliminary round in first place in Group A after wins over Czechia (5-0), Switzerland (5-1) and France (10-2). It booked its spot in the gold medal game after a 4-3 overtime win over Czechia in the quarterfinals and a 3-2 win over Finland in the semifinals.

Canada has collected nine men’s hockey gold medals (2014, 2010, 2002, 1952, 1948, 1932, 1928, 1924, 1920) at the Olympic Winter Games, to go along with five silver (2026, 1994, 1992, 1960, 1936) and three bronze (2018, 1968, 1956).

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

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2002 – CANADA 7, BELARUS 1

Steve Yzerman had a goal and two assists, Mario Lemieux added two helpers and seven different Canadians found the back of the net to lead Canada to the Olympic gold medal game with a semifinal win over Belarus.

The Europeans had earned their spot in the final four with a quarter-final victory over Sweden, considered one of the biggest upsets in international hockey history, but there would be no repeat against the Canadians.

“The night before the game, we had a team dinner and talked about (playing for gold),” says Canadian forward Ryan Smyth. “We knew we were lucky to be Olympians, but we were now one game away from getting a chance to bring back a gold medal. Obviously with our history, we knew how exciting that could be.”

Canada jumped out to an early lead when Yzerman scored at 6:05, but Belarus fought back to tie the game seven minutes later, with defenceman Ruslan Salei beating Martin Brodeur.

That would be the last puck to find its way past Brodeur, and the Canadian offence took over from there, starting with Eric Brewer’s game-winning goal at 17:25 of the opening period.

Scott Niedermayer doubled the lead early in the second period and Paul Kariya gave Canada even more breathing room before 40 minutes were complete. With the Canadians dominating Belarus, holding a 32-9 advantage in shots on goal after two, the third period was anti-climactic.

Simon Gagné, Eric Lindros and Jarome Iginla added goals in the final frame to complete the rout.

In all, seven Canadians scored goals, and 13 had at least a point – a total team effort.

“A lot of lines contributed in that game so it helped everyone settle in,” Smyth says. “Guys just seemed to find the right chemistry all through that tournament.”

Other Games

1952 – Canada continued its stifling defence, allowing Sweden just nine shots on goal – the third time in five games the Canadians kept their opponents under 10 – but escape with a narrow 3-2 victory to remain unbeaten.

1960 – Fred Etcher scored 12 seconds apart in the first period, the fastest two Olympic goals ever by a Canadian, and Jack Douglas had a hat trick to help Canada hammer Germany 12-0 in its first medal round game.

1980 – John Devaney scored for Canada, but the three Stastny brothers – Anton, Marion and Peter – combined for 11 points in Czechoslovakia’s 6-1 win in the fifth-place game in Lake Placid.

1988 – Merlin Malinowski and Serge Boisvert scored goals and Sean Burke made 28 saves in Canada’s 2-2 tie with Sweden to close out the preliminary round and leave the Canadians and Swedes tied with Finland atop Group A.

2006 – Alexander Ovechkin and Alexei Kovalev scored third-period goals, and Canada was shut out for the third time in the tournament, falling 2-0 to Russia in the quarter-finals in Torino.

2010 – Canada booked its spot in the women’s Olympic gold medal game for the fourth time in as many tries, getting a goal and an assist from Meghan Agosta, two assists from Jayna Hefford and 11 saves from Shannon Szabados to beat Finland 5-0 in the semifinals.

2018 – Haley Irwin and Marie-Philip Poulin scored in the second period to put Canada ahead after 40 minutes, but the gold medal game in PyeongChang goes all the way to the sixth round of the shootout before the United States secures a 3-2 win, leaving Canada with silver for the first time since 1998.

GAME NOTES: CANADA VS. UNITED STATES (FEB. 22)

The game the hockey world wanted is the game the hockey world gets. The 2026 Olympic Winter Games come to a close Sunday with Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team facing off against the United States for gold.

How We Got Here

The North American rivals have followed very similar paths to get to Sunday. Both went a perfect 3-0 in the preliminary round to earn the top two seeds for the playoffs, with the Canadians earning top spot based on a better goal differential (+17 to +11).

Both had overtime scares in the quarterfinals—Mitch Marner was the hero for Canada in a 4-3 win over Czechia, while Quinn Hughes did the honours for the U.S. in a 2-1 victory over Sweden.

As for the semifinals…

Last Game

Canada survived Finland in its semifinal, erasing a 2-0 second-period deficit and earning a 3-2 win on a power-play goal by Nathan MacKinnon with 35.2 seconds remaining. Sam Reinhart got Canada on the board in the second period—also with the man advantage—and Shea Theodore tied the game midway through the third.

The U.S. had no such drama in its semi, opening up a 5-0 lead after two periods en route to a 6-2 victory over Slovakia. Jack Hughes had two goals for the Americans—who scored three times in just over six minutes in the second period to put the game out of reach.

Last Meeting

The most recent Olympic matchup came four years in the preliminary round in Beijing, a 4-2 win for the U.S. Mat Robinson and Corban Knight provided the offence for the Canadians, who outshot the Americans 37-27 but were stymied by U.S. goaltender Strauss Mann.

But the last time Canada and the U.S. faced off in international competition? That would be almost a year ago to the day—Feb. 20, 2025 at TD Garden in Boston, in the championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off. MacKinnon opened the scoring for the Canadians and Sam Bennett tied it late in the second period, but it took overtime and an iconic game-winner from Connor McDavid for Canada to earn a 3-2 win in a best-on-best battle more than a decade in the making.

What to Watch

Let’s start with the obvious one for Canada—Sidney Crosby. The captain did not play in the semifinals after leaving the quarterfinal win over Czechia with a lower-body injury. Will the Canadians have their heart and soul for the finale? In goal, Jordan Binnington has been rock-solid once again; the netminder has a 1.74 goals-against average (third best among qualified goaltenders) and .914 save percentage (fifth best). One just needs to flash back 12 months to the 4 Nations Face-Off to see what the Richmond Hill product can do in the biggest of games; Binnington made 33 saves in the championship game, none bigger than a point-blank stop off Auston Matthews that was one of six saves he made in overtime. We’ll finish with a milestone watch—McDavid, who set the single-tournament Olympic scoring record by an NHLer (he has 2-11—13 in five games), needs two assists to set the all-time Canadian record for one Games, which has been held by Bob Attersley and Fred Etcher since 1960.

The Americans have been led by the top line of Jack Eichel (2-4—6) between the Tkachuk brothers—Brady (3-2—5) and Matthew (0-6—6), which has combined for 17 points in five games. And Quinn Hughes has been a beast on the backend, leading all defencemen (and ranking ninth among all players) with seven points (1-6—7). But just like the Canadians, the X-factor for the U.S. just might be between the pipes. Connor Hellebuyck, the reigning Hart Trophy and Vezina Trophy winner, has been terrific—across four starts, he has a 1.23 goals-against average and .947 save percentage, both tournament-best marks.

A Look Back

No country has been a more frequent foe at the Olympic Winter Games for Canada than its cross-border rival; this will be the 20th game between the Canadians and Americans on the biggest stage in sports.

That includes a of gold medal games in the NHL era—in 2002, Joe Sakic scored twice and added two assists as Canada ended a 50-year gold medal drought with a 5-2 win in Salt Lake City, and in 2010 (as if anyone needs reminding), Sidney Crosby scored his Golden Goal in a 3-2 victory in Vancouver.

All-time record: Canada leads 12-4-3 (2-0 in OT)
Canada goals: 66
United States goals: 43

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2002 – CANADA 3, UNITED STATES 2

Canada overcame a partisan crowd and some suspect officiating to defeat the United States 3-2 and capture its first women’s Olympic gold medal, and the country’s first in hockey in 50 years.

The Canadians had lost eight straight to their American rivals, but defender Geraldine Heaney says the team wasn’t worried about the streak. “You learn a lot more from losing, and it’s just how you deal with and learn from your mistakes,” she says. “That helped us prepare for that final game because at the end of the day nobody cares about those other games.”

Canada jumped out to an early lead when Caroline Ouellette fired home a Cherie Piper rebound only 1:45 into the game.

The story then became more about the skaters wearing the whistles than the ones wearing the jerseys. The American referee called eight straight penalties on Canada – “She might as well have worn a U.S. jersey,” says Heaney – but the team surrendered only one power-play goal.

Killing all those penalties – Canada would be called for 13 in the game; the U.S., six – shifted the momentum. “The Americans were starting to lose confidence because they couldn’t capitalize with the extra man,” says Heaney. “It had a snowball effect – we just kept building and getting better.”

Two minutes after the U.S. tied things up in the second, Hayley Wickenheiser pounced on a rebound to restore the team’s one-goal lead.

And as time all but expired on the period, Jayna Hefford corralled a bouncing puck and skated in alone, sneaking the puck by U.S. goaltender Sara DeCosta to put her team up by two with one second left on the clock.

With less than four minutes left in the game, the U.S. would get back to within one, but no closer.

The win capped an amazing career for Heaney, who in November 2013 was inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame. “I knew it would be my last game,” she says. “It was the best way I could retire from the National Women’s Team. I had seven world championships, but winning the Olympic gold, that was the one that was missing for me.”

Other Games

1952 – Canada defeated Switzerland 11-2 behind three goals from Frank Sullivan and two goals each from Billy Gibson and David Miller.

1992 – Curt Giles scored four minutes into the third period and Fabian Joseph added an insurance marker with just over two minutes left in the game as Canada beat Czechoslovakia 4-2. Dave Hansen and Dave Archibald had the other two goals in Canada’s semifinal victory.

1994 – Corey Hirsch turned aside 34 shots as Canada won a back-and-forth affair over Sweden, 3-2. Chris Kontos, Todd Hlushko and Petr Nedved had the goals for Canada.

1998 – Finland’s power play goal 17 seconds into the third period proved to be the game-winner as it captured the bronze medal with a 3-2 win over Canada. Canada outshot Finland 35-14, but only Rod Brind’Amour and Brendan Shanahan found the back of the net.

2006 – Brad Richards, Martin St-Louis and Chris Pronger staked Canada to a three-goal lead after one period and Martin Brodeur stole the show the rest of the way as Canada defeated the Czech Republic 3-2. The Czechs outshot the Canadians 33-16.

2010 – With its 5-3 victory, the United States defeated Canada in Olympic play for the first time since 1960. Eric Staal, Dany Heatley and Sidney Crosby scored for Canada, which outshot the U.S. 45-22.

2014 – Jamie Benn scored the lone goal early in the second period and Carey Price posted a 31-save shutout as Canada blanked the United States 1-0 to advance to the gold medal game for the second-consecutive Olympics.

2018 – Maxim Noreau scored the game-winning goal just 55 seconds into the third period, breaking open a scoreless game, and Kevin Poulin and Ben Scrivens shared a 21-save shutout as Canada moved into the semifinals in PyeongChang with a 1-0 win over Finland.

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2014 – CANADA 3, UNITED STATES 2 (OT)

It will be remembered, quite simply, as The Comeback.

Down 2-0 to the Americans as the clock ticked away, Canada sat just four minutes from its run of three-consecutive Olympic gold medals coming to an end.

But on the bench, there was no quit.

“We thought, ‘Hey, we’ve been down by a couple of goals, we’ve all been down by a couple of goals, so many times in our hockey careers and it’s difficult, it takes a lot to come back from that, but it’s not impossible,” Brianne Jenner said shortly after the game. “Remembering the experiences we had throughout the year helped us in that situation.”

Jenner got it started with 3:26 to go, taking a pass off the boards from Meaghan Mikkelson and letting go a shot that hit a U.S. defenceman and found its way in to cut the American lead in half.

With just 1:25 remaining, the U.S. hit the now infamous goal post on an empty net, “a sign that we were meant to come back,” captain Caroline Ouellette said, and with 55 seconds left, Marie-Philip Poulin scored to pull Canada even and forcing overtime.

A parade of penalties in the extra period put Canada on the power play, and Poulin got the golden goal for the second Games in a row, setting off a celebration in Sochi, and from coast to coast to coast across the country.

“That’s a game that is going to be tough to beat for a long time, whether as a fan, or as a player,” said Jayna Hefford, who joined Ouellette and Hayley Wickenheiser as four-time Olympic gold medallists. “People all the time are relating it to the 1972 Summit Series, and that’s traditionally male hockey fans … which shows the impact that it had.”

Other Games

1960 – Bobby Rousseau scored four times, Fred Etcher and George Samolenko added three goals each and Canada routed Japan 19-1 to improve to 2-0 and clinch first place in Group A in Squaw Valley, Calif. Etcher finished with seven points in the win.

1980 – Jim Nill, Randy Gregg and Brad Pirie scored goals to give Canada a 3-1 lead early in the second period, but the Soviet Union rebounded to earn a 6-4 victory over the Canadians in the preliminary round finale for both in Lake Placid.

1988 – Serge Boisvert scored two of the Olympic record-setting 10 goals in the first period (Canada led France 7-3 after 20 minutes) and added his hat trick marker in the third as the Canadians scored a wild 9-5 win in Calgary.

1998 – Trevor Linden scored with 63 seconds left to tie the game, but Czech Republic goaltender Dominik Hasek stopped all five Canadians in the shootout to lead to Czechs to a 2-1 semifinal win and send Canada to the bronze medal game in Nagano.

2002 – Joe Sakic scored in the first period, Steve Yzerman got the game-winner in the second and Martin Brodeur stopped 18 shots as Canada advanced to the semifinals with a 2-1 quarter-final victory over Finland.

2006 – Jayna Hefford had a goal and an assist, Hayley Wickenheiser added two helpers and Canada held Sweden to just eight shots on goal to win its second consecutive Olympic gold medal with a 4-1 win in Turin.

GAME NOTES: CANADA VS. FINLAND (FEB. 20)

After a nervy win in the quarterfinals, Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team continues its playoff run at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games with a semifinal showdown Friday against Finland.

Last Game

Canada punched its ticket to the final four with a come-from-behind 4-3 overtime win over Czechia on Wednesday. Nick Suzuki tied the game with 3:27 left before Mitch Marner roofed a backhand for the game-winner 1:22 into the extra period. Macklin Celebrini scored a goal and set up two others, and Connor McDavid had two assists to increase his tournament scoring lead.

The Finns did the Canadians one better in their quarterfinal, erasing a two-goal deficit in the final 6:06 before Artturi Lehkonen buried a breakaway 3:23 into overtime for a 3-2 victory over Switzerland. Sebastian Aho and Miro Heiskanen—with 72 seconds left—scored the late goals for Finland to force extra time.

Last Meeting

The last Olympic matchup between the Canadians and the Finns was in the quarterfinals at PyeongChang 2018. Maxim Noreau provided all the offence in that one, scoring 55 seconds into the third period for a 1-0 Canadian win. Ben Scrivens made six saves before leaving with an injury early in the second period, and Kevin Poulin stopped all 15 shots he faced the rest of the way to secure the combined shutout.

More recently, the teams clashed in the preliminary round at the 2025 IIHF World Championship, in what was another low-scoring game. Ryan O’Reilly scored shorthanded for Canada in the second period before Patrik Puistola answered for Finland in the third, and Eeli Tolvanen netted the shootout decider to leave the Canadians with a 2-1 defeat.

What to Watch

Marner just seems to step up in the biggest moments. A year ago at the 4 Nations Face-Off, he scored the overtime winner in the tournament opener against Sweden, and set up the game-tying and game-winning goals in the final against the United States. He had been goalless before his OT heroics against Czechia on Wednesday, but Marner has been far from quiet in Milan. He is one of just four Canadians to record a point in all four games—joining Celebrini, McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon—and his +5 mark is third-best among Canadian forwards, trailing only Celebrini and McDavid, who are both +8. The Thornhill, Ontario, product is also averaging 15:59 of ice time per game, trailing only the trio of McDavid (18:01), Celebrini (17:43) and MacKinnon (17:42) among Canadian forwards.

The Finns have been a by-committee team offensively, with just one player scoring more than two goals (Aho has three) and six players (Aho, Lehkonen, Joel Armia, Kaapo Kakko, Eetu Luostarinen and Mikko Rantanen) recording at least four points—and none with more than five. Juuse Saros has been a workhorse between the pipes; the Nashville Predators netminder is the only goaltender in the tournament who has played every second for his team, and Saros has been terrific. He ranks third in goals-against average (1.49) and save percentage (.938). And since we’ve covered the forwards and the goaltender, let’s make a quick stop on the blue line and highlight Heiskanen, who has averaged a tournament-high 26:21 of ice time per game while chipping in two goals and an assist.

A Look Back

The Canadians and Finns have been frequent foes at the Olympic Winter Games, meeting 12 times since 1952—Canada holds a 7-5 advantage and has won three of the last four.

This is the second time the teams have faced off in the semifinals; at Lillehammer 1994, Canada scored five-straight goals from five different players—Todd Hlushko, Petr Nedved, Brad Werenka, Jean-Yves Roy and Greg Parks—to erase a 2-0 deficit late in the second period and earn a 5-3 victory.

All-time record: Canada leads 7-5 (1-0 in OT)
Canada goals: 41
Finland goals: 29

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2002 – CANADA 7, FINLAND 3

Therese Brisson and Hayley Wickenheiser each scored twice as Canada defeated Finland in the Salt Lake City semifinals.

Brisson opened the scoring six minutes in on the power play, and Wickenheiser built on that momentum two minutes later with a short-handed marker.

The Finns cut the deficit in half with less than a minute to play in the period.

Then things got interesting.

“The second period was probably one of the most frustrating 20 minutes of hockey I’ve ever played,” says Brisson. “We had all the chances in the world and were doing all the right things, but we just couldn’t bury one.”

Canada’s dominance was working against it. With her teammates spending so much time in the offensive zone, goalie Kim St-Pierre was left as a spectator for long stretches at a time. At one point Canada had four straight power plays and still couldn’t find the back of the net. “We really had control the entire game,” says Brisson. “It’s just that second period we weren’t able to bury our chances and the two they had they did.”

During the second intermission the team still felt calm, even though it now trailed 3-2. The same could not be said for everyone in the stands. “We heard later our parents and family were in quite the panic because they didn’t have tickets to the bronze medal game,” laughs Brisson.

The team broke through early in the third, when Wickenheiser notched her second of the game. Six seconds later, Jayna Hefford scored.

Brisson, Vicky Sunohara and Cassie Campbell all scored in the last three minutes to put the game out of reach.

While the closer-than-expected semifinal may have left family a little white-knuckled, it helped prepare the team for its next game against the U.S. “You don’t want to go through a tournament like that with no adversity and then come out and play your biggest rival,” says Brisson. “I think at the end of the day we were glad for it.”

Other Games

1928 – Dave Trottier scored five times and Hugh Plaxton four times as Canada beat host Switzerland 13-0 to win the gold medal in St. Moritz. Goaltenders Jim Sullivan and Stuffy Mueller didn’t allow a goal during the tournament.

1952 – Billy Gibson scored twice to lead Canada to a 4-1 win over Czechoslovakia. Bruce Dickson and Gordie Robertson also scored, while Ralph Hansch made 21 saves in net.

1960 – Canada – represented by the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen – opened the Squaw Valley Games win a 5-2 win over Sweden. Bob Attersley led the way with a goal and three assists and Fred Etcher scored twice and added an assist.

1984 – Canada outshot Sweden 28-22, but the Swedes scored the only two goals of the game to clinch the bronze medal. It was the Canadians’ third straight shutout loss to close out the tournament.

1994 – Paul Kariya scored just over a minute in to the game, but that was the only goal Canada would get as it fell 3-1 to Slovakia, its first loss in Lillehammer.

2006 – Finland scored twice in the first period and withstood continual pressure in its zone the rest of the way to defeat Canada 2-0, handing the Canadians their second shutout loss in a row.

2014 – Shea Weber blasted home a power-play goal with 6:54 remaining to help Canada survive a scare from Latvia and earn a 2-1 quarter-final win. Patrick Sharp also scored for the Canadians, who withstood a Herculean 55-save effort from Latvian goaltender Kristers Gudlevskis.

2018 – After allowing just two goals in three preliminary-round games, Canada continued its suffocating defensive play with a 5-0 semifinal win over the Olympic Athletes from Russia. Jennifer Wakefield scored twice, including the game-winner just 1:50 in, and Shannon Szabados posted a 14-save shutout.

Another Olympic Winter Games is coming to a close in Milan, and another chapter of Team Canada hockey history is being written in Italy.

As part of Black History Month, let’s take a look back at the seven Black athletes who have helped – and are helping – write that history.

DARREN LOWE

1984 – 7GP 2G 2A 4P (4th place)

The trailblazer, Lowe became Canada’s first Black Olympian at the 1984 Games in Sarajevo. The Toronto product scored twice—getting the Canadians even early in the third period of an eventual 4-2 win over Finland and counting the game-winner in an 8-1 win over Austria – and added a pair of assists, putting his name on the scoresheet in each of the first four games (all Canadian wins).

CLAUDE VILGRAIN

1988 – 6GP 0G 0A 0P (4th place)

Born in Haiti and raised in Quebec City, Vilgrain was a Team Canada staple in the mid-1980s, playing 145 games with Canada’s National Men’s Team from 1986-88. That run concluded in Calgary, where he went scoreless in six games in the home-ice Games.

JAROME IGINLA

2002 – 6GP 3G 1A 4P (gold medal)
2006 – 6GP 2G 1A 3P (7th place)
2010 – 7GP 5G 2A 7P (gold medal)

The 2021 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee was front and centre in a pair of games that will forever have a place in Olympic hockey lore. In 2002, the St. Albert, Alberta, native scored twice and added an assist in a 5-2 gold medal game win over the U.S. that ended a 50-year drought for Canada. Eight years later, cries of ‘Iggy! Iggy! Iggy!’ rang in the ears of Canadian fans as Iginla set up Sidney Crosby for the Golden Goal in Vancouver.

P.K. SUBBAN

2014 – 1GP 0G 0A 0P (gold medal)

Has there ever been a better seventh defenceman? As part of a deep Canadian blue-line, Subban – the reigning Norris Trophy winner—got into just a single game in Sochi, playing 11:41 in a 6-0 prelim win over Austria.

SARAH NURSE

2018 – 5GP 1G 0A 1P (silver medal)
2022 – 7GP 5G 13A 18P (gold medal)
2026 – 6GP 0G 2A 2P (medal game to be played)

The first Black woman to wear red and white on the biggest stage in sports, Nurse netted just a single goal in PyeongChang, but it was a beauty in a big game – she wired home the game-winner in a 2-1 preliminary-round victory over the U.S. The Hamilton, Ontario, product broke out in a big way in Beijing, setting an Olympic women’s hockey record for points in a single tournament with 18, earning a place on the all-star team and helping Canada regain its gold medal.

JOSH HO-SANG

2022 – 5GP 0G 3A 3P (6th place)

The Thornhill, Ontario, native played a complementary role in Beijing, averaging just over 11 minutes of ice time—only two Canadian forwards had less—and recording three assists in five games. Two of his helpers came in the prelim finale, a win over host China.

SOPHIE JAQUES

2026 – 6GP 0G 3A 3P (medal game to be played)

The first-time Olympian has been one of Canada’s steadiest defenders in Milan; averaging just over 17 minutes a game, Jaques has earned assists in three-consecutive games and is a team-best +5 while directing 13 shots on goal, third best among Canadian blue-liners.

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1992 – CANADA 4, GERMANY 3 (SO)

When Canadian hockey fans think of Olympic hockey shootouts, the first that come to mind are the 1998 semifinal loss to the Czech Republic or the 1994 gold medal defeat at the hands of Peter Forsberg and Sweden.

But two years before the loss in Lillehammer, Canada came out on top in the first shootout in Olympic history, a quarter-final victory over Germany at the 1992 Games in Albertville, France.

“We had practiced penalty shots quite a bit but I never imagined it would ever come to life the way it did,” recalls defenceman Jason Woolley, who scored one of the three Canadian goals in the shootout. “It was a momentum builder for us at the time.”

With the game tied 2-2 after two, Canada looked as if it had taken the lead for good when Kevin Dahl scored with just 6:06 to go, but the Germans answered less than four minutes later, forcing overtime and, eventually, a shootout.

After the first four shooters were unsuccessful, Woolley gave Canada the lead to start off Round 3, wiring a wrist shot over the glove of German netminder Helmut de Raaf.

Just don’t ask Woolley to remember the goal.

“We were so focused on winning at all costs. I don’t remember much other than Dave King calling my name for the shootout. I was real nervous, until I hit the ice. Then I was ready to shine.”

Wally Schreiber and Michael Rumrich traded goals in Round 4, keeping Canada in the lead, but Andreas Brockmann converted the Germans’ last chance in Round 5, forcing a sudden death round.

Canada’s 18-year-old phenom, Eric Lindros, served as the shootout hero, deftly deking to the forehand to beat de Raaf, and veteran netminder Sean Burke got just enough of Peter Draisaitl’s shot, which stopped on the goal line, to send Canada to the semifinals.

Other Games

1928 – Hugh Plaxton scored six goals to help Canada, represented by the University of Toronto Grads, hammer Great Britain 14-0 in the opening game for both in St. Moritz.

1952 – Canada kept its perfect record intact and hit double-digits in goals for the third time in as many games, getting three goals from George Abel and shutout goaltending from Eric Paterson in an 11-0 win over Poland.

1980 – John Devaney, Kevin Primeau, Paul MacLean, Ron Davidson, Warren Anderson and David Hindmarch had goals and Paul Pageau made 13 saves for the shutout as Canada scored twice in each period to blank Japan 6-0.

1988 – Randy Gregg scored for Canada, but three goals in 6:09 late in the first period were enough for Finland to earn a 3-1 win in Calgary, handing the Canadians their lone preliminary round loss.

1998 – Joe Nieuwendyk and Shayne Corson scored in the first 2:13, Wayne Gretzky had a pair of assists and Canada held Kazakhstan to just seven shots over the final 40 minutes of a 4-1 quarter-final win in Nagano, sending the Canadians to the semifinals.

2002 – Mario Lemieux scored twice and Joe Nieuwendyk tied the game with 3:24 to go as Canada wrapped up a 1-1-1 preliminary round in Salt Lake City with a 3-3 tie with the Czech Republic.

2006 – Canada outshot Switzerland 49-16, including 24-1 in the third period, but two goals from Canadian-born Paul DiPietro and spectacular goaltending from Martin Gerber led the Swiss to a 2-0 victory, their first ever over Canada at the Olympics.

2010 – Dany Heatley and Patrick Marleau had a goal and an assist each in regulation time, and Sidney Crosby scored the lone goal in the shootout as Canada earned a 3-2 win over Switzerland.

2018 – Kevin Poulin needed to make just 19 saves for the shutout, and goals from Christian Thomas, Eric O’Dell, Maxim Lapierre and Gilbert Brule gave Canada a 4-0 win over South Korea to close the preliminary round and send the Canadians to the quarterfinals.

GAME NOTES: CANADA VS. CZECHIA (FEB. 18)

It’s time to play win-or-go-home hockey as Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team gets its playoff round underway Wednesday at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games with a quarterfinal matchup against Czechia.

Last Game

Canada closed out a perfect preliminary round Sunday with a 10-2 win over France, clinching the No. 1 overall seed for the playoffs in the process. Macklin Celebrini scored a pair of goals and added an assist, and Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid and Mark Stone chipped in with a goal and two helpers apiece. In all, nine Canadians scored and 15 recorded at least a point in the victory.

Czechia punched its ticket to the quarterfinals by outlasting Denmark 3-2 in a qualification game Tuesday. Roman Cervenka, the Czechs’ 40-year-old captain, led the way with a goal and an assist as the two teams combined to score all five goals in a span of 11:33 in the second period. Lukas Dostal stopped 24 of 26 in the Czech goal, including all 12 he faced as the Danes pushed for the equalizer in the third period.

Last Meeting

The Canadians and Czechs opened Group A prelim play six days ago in Milan, with Canada earning a comfortable 5-0 win. Celebrini got the scoring started, McDavid had three assists (the first of his three-consecutive three-point efforts) and Jordan Binnington was perfect to record a 26-save shutout.

What to Watch

Let’s put the focus on two players who aren’t strangers to the spotlight. Despite being youngest player on the Team Canada roster, Celebrini has been spectacular. His four goals have him tied for the tournament lead with Nick Olesen of Denmark and Tim Stützle of Germany, and he became the first NHLer to score a penalty-shot goal against the French. But none of this should come as a surprise; the Vancouver product—who won’t turn 20 until the middle of June—sits fourth in NHL scoring with 81 points (28-53—81) in 55 games. One of the three players he trails? That would be McDavid. The NHL scoring leader (34-62—96 in 58 GP) has carried his red-hot play (60 points in 31 games since Dec. 4) to Milan; McDavid leads the tournament with nine points in three games, has already set the record for points by a Canadian NHLer at the Olympics (surpassing Jonathan Toews, who had eight in Vancouver) and is chasing down a couple of other all-time marks: points in one tournament by an NHLer (Teemu Selanne and Saku Koivu each had 11 in 2006) and assists by a Canadian (Bob Attersley and Fred Etcher each had 12 in 1960). He has some work to do to set the modern-day Canadian record for points—Etcher finished with 21 in Squaw Valley.

Martin Necas has done the heavy lifting offensively for the Czechs, posting three goals and four assists through four games—meaning he has been involved in seven of the 12 goals Czechia has scored in Milan. And his goals have been timely. Necas opened the scoring in wins over France and Denmark, and scored the game-tying marker with 2:06 left to get the Czechs an important point in an overtime loss to Switzerland. The 27-year-old has been terrific for the Colorado Avalanche this season; he has 62 points (22-40—62) in 55 games, putting him within striking distance of his career high (83 in 2024-25 with Carolina/Colorado). And who will get the call between the pipes? Will the Czechs go back-to-back with Dostal after his stellar effort against the Danes? Will it be Dan Vladar, who stopped nine of 12 in the win over France? Or will they go off the board and give the start to Karel Vejmelka, who has been lights out with the Utah Mammoth this season (27-16, 2.58 GAA, .903 SV%) but has yet to see the ice in Milan?

A Look Back

Since the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993, Canada and Czechia have faced off seven times at the Olympic Winter Games, with the Canadians winning four (with one tie).

The first meeting was in the quarterfinals at the 1994 Games in Lillehammer, when Paul Kariya scored the overtime winner to send Canada to the semis, and both Czech victories came in shootouts (including the 1998 semifinals, but we don’t talk about that one…).

All-time record: Canada leads 4-2-1 (1-2 in OT/SO)
Canada goals: 23
Czechia goals: 16