The Olympics showcased everything that’s magical about hockey
You couldn’t have scripted a more exciting end to the men’s Olympic hockey tournament in Milano.
OK, maybe a real 5-on-5 overtime. But that wasn’t going to happen under IIHF rules. But beyond that, it had everything. Intensity. Drama. A team winning gold for a fallen friend.
Regardless of which side you’re on, you’ll never forget Canada vs. the United States on Feb. 22, 2026.
We finally got NHL participation back at the Winter Olympics after 12 years. Over a decade of waiting for the best players to get back to where they belonged. We saw Connor McDavid take over as Canada’s star. Connor Hellebuyck and Auston Matthews finally shed the “choker” labels – at least, for now. Juraj Slafkovsky showed that 2022 wasn’t a fluke, either.
We even saw the non-NHLers – the Genoni’s, Hlavaj’s and Olesen’s of the world – show they could hang with the elite of the elite.
If you didn’t enjoy the Winter Olympic men’s hockey tournament, you don’t like hockey. Simple as that. It was a spectacle. The bottom teams proved they weren’t going to be blasted like they used to. The top teams didn’t get to roll through opponents the way they might have in the past. From an overall standpoint, this might have been the most talent-rich Olympics we’ve seen.
Sure, post-tournament injury chatter will persist, as it always does. Kevin Fiala’s season is over, which could derail the Los Angeles Kings’ season. Sidney Crosby was held out of Canada’s last two games with a leg ailment. Nathan MacKinnon, among others, rarely looked healthy.
But it’s the Olympics, man. Everyone’s playing for their country. There wasn’t a single player in this tournament who didn’t want to be there, leaving everything on the line for the chance to finish with gold. Most never had a chance to try before – and many will never get a chance to do it again.
For the Americans, you can’t help but feel emotional. Not only did they win gold for the first time in any of the player’s life times, but they won it for Johnny Gaudreau – with his family in attendance. It was special watching them bring his jersey – and his kids – on the ice as part of the post-game celebration.
American players have heard about 1980 their entire lives. They can finally show the rest of the world that they can show up when it matters most. You could argue 1996, but this group might have been the best lineup the U.S. has ever assembled. Canada might have had the pure skill, but the Americans had the more rounded team, and it paid off in such a huge way.
For Canada – a country that already went through the heart-pounding moments from the World Series a few months back – it’ll sting. It’ll hurt for a long, long time. First, it was the Crosby injury. Then, it was the blown chances to win this on seemingly open nets – twice. How about that missed 5-on-3 opportunity, with Canada registering just three shots? Or the late-game power play that fell flat?
This will feel like a golden opportunity absolutely wasted. The 4 Nations Face-Off win probably felt nice, but nothing compares to the Olympics. Canada is a nation that’s used to winning big games, and it hasn’t happened enough in recent years.
The NHL is the greatest hockey league in the world. But it doesn’t hold a candle to having 12 countries banding together to cheer on their favorite players for two weeks. This is all for national pride. And in a world often divided by hate, the two-week reprise where sporting heroes are made is something special. Everyone wants their country to win on the biggest stage.
Canada. Czechia. Denmark. Finland. France. Germany. Italy. Latvia. Slovakia. Sweden. Switzerland. United States. Every country had a reason to be proud, for one reason or another.
Everyone will remember the golden goal. But the stories go much deeper than that. It started with Slovakia shocking Finland en route to the group win. How about Damian Clara nearly stealing a win against Sweden? Or France leading a period against Czechia? The big dogs will continue to be the ones stealing medals. But there’s no such thing as an easy game anymore.
Only three teams leave with a medal, but every country had something to smile about. There are no participation medals in Olympic sports. But what we saw is that the international game is truly in a good state. Anyone who has followed the worldwide game over the past 15 years knows how far it has come.
We saw the bright beginnings of so many future Olympic stars. Macklin Celebrini, Dalibor Dvorsky and Oscar Fisker Molgaard come to mind. We also saw the end – or the likely end – of many national team stars at the Olympics. Czechia’s Roman Cervenka, France’s Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Latvia’s Kaspars Daugavins, Switzerland’s Genoni – and maybe even Crosby?
And we can’t forget the women, either. Italy made the hometown fans proud. Switzerland proved they meant business again. And Canada and the United States featured another incredible, edge-of-your-seat finale, with the Americans winning that, too.
The Olympics had everything. Late-game comebacks and heartbreaking collapses. Friends, teammates, battling as foes. Two of the biggest hockey powerhouses duking it out for gold. European fans got to watch the game’s biggest stars in prime time. North American fans showed their loyalty, watching at all hours of the day. Schools took breaks to show huge moments, creating lifelong memories for so many young fans. That’s how you build the game.
What a time, hockey fans. And hopefully, there’s much, much, much more of this to come. See you at the 2028 World Cup.
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