The U.S. men’s hockey team faced Canada in the 2026 Winter Olympics gold medal game, winning 2-1 in overtime on Sunday, Feb. 22, at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena in Milan, Italy.
It’s Team USA’s first gold medal in men’s hockey since the 1980 “Miracle On Ice” team in Lake Placid, New York.
Jack Hughes (Canton) scored the winning goal for Team USA in three-on-three at 1:41 into overtime, on a great play and pass from Michigan alum Zach Werenski (Grosse Pointe) of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Hughes, of the New Jersey Devils, had his teeth cracked in the third period on a high-sticking call, but gets a gold medal for his efforts by shooting the puck under the pads of Canada goalie Jordan Binnington (St. Louis Blues).
Matt Boldy gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead on a highlight-reel goal six minutes into the game.
After U.S. goalie Connor Hellebuyck (Commerce Township) made numerous fantastic saves, Cale Makar finally got the Canadians even late in the second period.
The U.S. reached the gold medal game by defeating Slovakia, 6-2, in the semifinal on Friday, after Canada rallied from two goals down for a 3-2 victory over Finland with a Nathan MacKinnon go-ahead goal with less than a minute left in the game.
Hughes’ brother, Quinn, scored the overtime goal Wednesday in the quarterfinals to push the U.S. past Sweden, 2-1.
The U.S. men’s team has its third gold medal in Olympic play, its first away from U.S. soil, after previously winning in 1960 (Squaw Valley, California) and 1980 (Lake Placid, New York). The 2026 victory comes 46 years to the date of one of the most iconic moments in sporting history, a 4-3 Team USA win over the Soviet Union in the 1980 semifinals, leading to Al Michaels’ legendary TV call: “Do you believe in miracles?! Yes!”
Canada has nine gold medals in men’s hockey: 1920 (Antwerp), 1924 (Chamonix), 1928 (St. Moritz), 1932 (Lake Placid), 1948 (St. Moritz), 1952 (Oslo), 2002 (Salt Lake City), 2010 (Vancouver) and 2014 (Sochi).
NHL players joined Olympic hockey in the 1998 Winter Olympics at Nagano, Japan.
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