Men's Olympic Ice Hockey
2026 Olympic
Hockey
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The U.S. men's hockey team faces Germany today, with the Americans looking to go a perfect 3-0 in the preliminary round of the 2026 Winter Olympics tournament.
Team USA previously took down Latvia 5-1 on Thursday and Denmark 6-3 yesterday, though No. 2 goaltender Jeremy Swayman struggled in the latter game. Connor Hellebuyck, the reigning Hart Memorial Trophy winner in the NHL, is expected to start in goal for the U.S. today.
Follow along below for live play-by-play updates and real-time analysis from The Athletic’s NHL staff.
Head coach: Mike Sullivan
Forwards
Defensemen
Goalies
The 12 teams in the men's hockey tournament are divided into three groups, with each team playing every team in their group once. Group winners advance directly to the quarterfinals, along with the best second-place finisher. The remaining eight teams compete in a play-in round, with the four winners of those games advancing to the quarterfinals.
There are no ties in Olympic hockey. Non-medal games proceed to a shootout if no team scores during one period of 3-on-3 sudden-death overtime. Wins in regulation are worth three points; wins in overtime are worth two points and losses in overtime are worth one point.
Within their respective groups, teams are ranked by total points. Teams across all groups are then ranked by (in order): group rank, total points, goal difference (goals scored minus goals allowed) and goals scored in group play. Last, if necessary, are International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) rankings.
One of the biggest changes since NHLers were last on the Olympic stage 12 years ago is how the games are being called.
Without much fanfare, the NHL and IIHF have spent the last five years or so diligently narrowing the gap between rulebooks.
“The last time the NHL players were at the Olympics, the rulebooks of the IIHF and the National Hockey League were significantly different,’’ Scott Zelkin, head of officiating for the IIHF, said in an interview with The Athletic on Tuesday. “Not only standards, how we penalize different fouls, but also just the pure and simple labeling of penalties and what you can call different fouls.
“In the last handful of years, those two rulebooks have come to the point where they are almost identical,’’ added Zelkin, a former NHL referee from 1997 to 2003. “There are a few nuances that are different, and the fans may see some differences, but in general, the rulebooks now are really, really close. So that’s the first thing that in our mind is helping to standardize the officiating really across the world.’’
It’s an IIHF tournament with an IIHF rulebook, but the overall sense is that a blended officiating standard will be on display at this men’s Olympic tournament.
Follow the link below to learn more.
GO FURTHER
As NHL players return to Olympics, blended officiating will be on full display
The 2026 Milan Cortina Games marks the first time NHL players are competing in the Olympics since 2014.
2022 Beijing
2018 Pyeongchang
2014 Sochi
2010 Vancouver
2006 Turin
Russia competed as Olympic Athletes from Russia in 2018 and as Russian Olympic Committee in 2022 due to sanctions related to doping.
There have been 25 editions of men's hockey at the Winter Olympics. Here are the six most successful nations:
Great Britain, Germany, Switzerland, Slovakia have also won medals in men's hockey.
Russia and Czechia's totals include medals won as predecessor nations.
Will Team USA keep its momentum going against Germany? Which country will win the gold medal in men's hockey?
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Today's men's hockey game between USA and Germany at the 2026 Winter Olympics will air on USA Network and stream on Peacock and NBCOlympics.com for fans in the U.S.
Today's men's hockey game between the USA and Germany at the 2026 Winter Olympics is scheduled for 9:10 p.m. CET local time in Milan. That's 3:10 p.m. ET and 12:10 p.m. PT in the U.S.
Hello and welcome to The Athletic's continuing live coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympic's men's hockey tournament.
Today we're back in Milan as Team USA finishes up preliminary round play against Germany, with the Americans looking for a perfect 3-0 record in the group stage.
Stay with us and we build to puck drop and bring you play-by-play updates and real-time analysis from our hockey experts on The Athletic’s NHL staff.
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