Jason La Rose
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