For NHL players like Tim Stützle, Lucas Raymond and Matthew Tkachuk, the Olympic Village has been an adjustment from the usual routine. Michael Russo / The Athletic
The Athletic has live coverage of Canada vs. Finland and USA vs. Slovakia in the 2026 Winter Olympics men’s hockey semifinals.
MILAN — The Olympic Village is the place to be before and after hockey games.
Just take Thursday. Early in the afternoon the day after the U.S. men’s hockey team beat Sweden in the quarterfinals, U.S. players Matthew Tkachuk, Zach Werenski and Connor Hellebuyck hopped on Lime scooters to head to lunch — only to run into Sweden’s Lucas Raymond and Germany’s Tim Stützle, whose team lost to Slovakia in the quarters, waiting with long faces for Ubers so they could head to the airport for return flights to North America.
An awkward meeting, or no?
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“I wouldn’t say it’s weird,” Tkachuk said. “I think we obviously expected to be in the semifinals, and then we’re dealt a really tough task with Sweden, and one of us had to go home. And fortunately for us, we’re still here, but I would have a hard time wrapping my head around it if we were heading home today. It’s very unfortunate for them, because they’re a hell of a team and one of the best in the world. They probably deserve to be in the semifinals. So do we.”
As Tkachuk relayed the story, the U.S. coaching staff, led by Mike Sullivan, was filing into cars to go back to their hotel. Only five staff members from each nation’s hockey team can stay in the Village, and those are essential athletic trainers and doctors. The coaches are inconveniently staying several kilometers away, but to conduct a team meeting Thursday morning — reviewing the Sweden win and beginning a pre-scout on semifinal opponent, Slovakia — it was easier for the coaches to come to the Village rather than arranging a bus to bring 25 hockey players to their hotel.
As the men’s coaches prepared to depart, U.S. women’s coach John Wroblewski walked out and gave U.S. men’s assistant coach John Hynes a bear hug.
“Get it done,” Hynes told his protege and former U.S. National Team Development Program assistant a few hours before the Canada-U.S. women’s gold-medal matchup.
That game is set for 1:10 p.m. Eastern time and 7:10 p.m. local, which is practically a matinee for the men’s team. On Friday, they will play their fifth consecutive 9:10 p.m. local time game. That means “morning skates” in the afternoon, long days of anticipation and 3 or 4 a.m. bedtimes because players are so wired after games.
“It’s a little different scheduling,” forward J.T. Miller said. “Everything’s just two hours back. Sleeping a little later than you normally would. The meetings and the video sessions are a little later in the day, but it’s the same as being back home. Try to get the rest and recovery. Take care of your body. Make sure you’re ready when it counts.”
Tkachuk and Werenski offered inside glimpses of what happens after such late finishes.
“I got to bed really late (Wednesday night), so woke up (Thursday), went down (to the dining hall) kind of at the end of breakfast, early lunch, didn’t even eat, just had a coffee and talked to a few people, made a few trades for some pins,” Tkachuk said. “That’s like my normal morning. Normally, you’re sitting at a table with all the hockey guys, but there is a table of some of the figure skaters from the U.S. and from other countries right next to us.
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“So we’re just kind of hanging, talking with them. Bunch of us went to the gym, so did an hour workout, had a meeting, and now got the rest of the day to do whatever we want.”
And how late of a night was it after the Sweden win?
“I don’t remember exactly what time we got back, but I would say most of the time our buses after games have been 12:45, which gets us back here at one,” Tkachuk said. “We all go to the hall, try to get some fuel in us. There’s a few of us that play cards every night after games. I would say last night you’re probably not shutting it down ’til the low threes by the time everything’s all said and done. But that’s what happens when you have an Americano and espresso at 6 and 7 p.m. at night. I guess you’re asking for it.”
Werenski said after Wednesday’s game, Sweden’s team was awkwardly sharing that dining hall with the U.S. team.
“It’s a little weird just with us and Sweden being the only two teams in there,” Werenski said. “Obviously, it’s a little bit better for us after a win, but you can imagine, it’ll probably be hard for them in that situation. But it’s all part of the experience.”
What was it like on the ice and U.S. bench during the frantic final five minutes of Thursday’s third period and then overtime?
Tkachuk, Miller and Werenski offered their perspectives.
After a TV timeout with about six minutes left, Hynes called three lines of forwards over to remind players of their five-on-six tendencies in case it got to the point that Sweden pulled its goalie for an extra attacker. That eventually happened, and Mika Zibanejad scored to tie the game, though it’s hard to consider it an extra attacker goal because it came just five seconds after Jacob Markstrom came to the Sweden bench. The extra attacker barely had entered the offensive zone.
Tkachuk said Hynes reminded players of the forecheck and in-zone responsibilities, as well.
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“I thought we did do a great job,” Tkachuk said. “And it was just a hell of a shot. And even (Hellebuyck), he was there on it. He beat him to the post, and it just squeaked in above. But I thought we did a really good job of defending it all. Sometimes, got to tip your cap to an unbelievable shot.”
Added Miller, Zibanejad’s New York Rangers teammate, “(Hynes) just talked about their tendencies. Obviously, we don’t know that very well. What they like and a couple responsibilities off the faceoff. … Obviously, Mika has scored a bunch from that spot”
Said Werenski, “Our coaching staff are super prepared. I mean, you look at our staff and how long they’ve been in NHL — Stanley Cups and all that — I mean, it’s a very impressive coaching staff to be around and very smart people. I’ve learned a lot from the 4 Nations last year and now the Olympics.”
After Zibanejad scored, Sullivan and Tkachuk tried to pump up the bench. Tkachuk, his brother, Brady, and Jack Eichel didn’t have time to mope. Sullivan put the line out for the ensuing faceoff.
“So we couldn’t dwell on it at all,” Tkachuk said. “And our mindset was just get it in their zone and try to score. And we had a couple looks there, and then (Auston Matthews’) line went (with Jake Guentzel and Matt Boldy), and they were in their zone the whole time. So I thought that that momentum from those two shifts was definitely a positive going into overtime.”
In overtime, Quinn Hughes became the hero. Werenski was mic’d up and yelled from the bench, “Do your thing, Quinn,” right before Hughes’ winner.
Werenski and Jake Sanderson had each gotten one shift each between Hughes’ first shift and his last. On the last one, not only did Hughes wave off a line change at one point but he also stayed as far away from the bench as possible so he couldn’t change.
He wanted to be on the ice for the big moment.
His teammates understood.
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“If you go down our lineup, probably all the guys on our team are guys that start overtime (and are) out there the majority of it (for their NHL teams),” Werenski said. “Quinn’s probably one of the best in the world at three-on-three overtime. … Obviously, a guy like him can make plays like that, and you’ve just got to let him do his thing. I mean, I’ve seen it a bunch in the summers (skating with Hughes in Michigan), him make plays like that. I’ve seen it in the NHL, all his highlights. And then obviously at the world’s biggest stage in a moment like that, he’s the guy that comes through.
“So you trust your teammates, and in that moment, you trust Quinn’s read on that. And he felt like he had a moment where he could help get our team over the finish line, and he did just that, so pretty incredible.”
Added Miller, Hughes’ former Vancouver Canucks teammate, “I couldn’t be happier for Quinn. It sucks playing against him in overtime. There’s not much you can do. He’s gonna get a chance at some point.”
And when that puck went in, the jubilation is hard to describe.
“You get down to these last few games, quarters, semis, finals, they’re all Game 7’s, so you’re aware of the circumstances, you’re aware that you’re either moving on or you’re going home,” Werenski said. “It’s almost easier being out there — when you’re in the moment and just playing. When you’re on the bench, you have no control over it. I’m probably more nervous in that situation.
“I felt like we were the better team last night, and I think we deserved to win. Probably made it a little bit closer than we would’ve liked. But yeah, just an incredible game. And those are the moments you’ll always remember playing hockey.”
The Americans now have a semifinal date with a formidable opponent in Slovakia. They’re hoping for another big win so they can advance to Sunday’s gold-medal game against the Canada-Finland winner.
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“It’s another Game 7 tomorrow, and we understand what’s at stake and how good they’re playing right now,” Werenski said. “We’ll see all the stuff on social media. I’m sure Quinn’s highlighted and all that stuff, and it’s great. But in terms of our focus, it definitely shifts to Slovakia right away.”
Added Tkachuk, “(Slovakia’s) playing really, really well right now. And they definitely dominated Germany, probably more than we did (in a 5-1 win on Feb. 15). They beat them more than we beat them when it comes to control of the game. They played really well in that first game against Finland. I actually watched the majority of that game. They played them really, really well. They compete hard. They’re big. They’re physical. They use the crowd. They’re stingy. And they play really hard. Almost like defend really hard and wait for their chances.
“So it’s up to us to make sure we’re ready to go.”
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Michael Russo is a senior writer covering the Minnesota Wild and the National Hockey League for The Athletic. He has covered the NHL since 1995 (Florida Panthers) and the Wild since 2005, previously for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and Minneapolis Star Tribune. Michael is a five-time Minnesota Sportswriter of the Year and in 2017 was named the inaugural Red Fisher Award winner as best beat writer in the NHL. Michael can be seen on NHL Network; and heard on KFAN (100.3 FM) and the Worst Seats in the House podcast (talknorth.com). He can be found on Instagram and X at @russohockey and Bluesky at @russohockey.bsky.social. Follow Michael on Twitter @RussoHockey
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