The preliminary round of the men’s hockey tournament officially came to a close on Sunday in Milan, with the United States taking down Germany 5–1.
With the win, Team USA finished Group Play 3–0–0–0 and has earned a bye into the quarterfinals of the upcoming playoffs—along with Canada, Slovakia, and Finland.
Here’s a look at the final standings from Groups A, B, and C—along with the final playoff bracket and when each contest will be played as the puck gets set to drop in the medal round at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Before we dive in, here’s a brief overview of the format: 12 teams were separated into three groups of four, with each playing each other in round-robin fashion for the preliminary round. The top four teams—each group's winner and the best second-place team—have advanced directly to the quarterfinals, while the remaining eight teams will play in the quarterfinal qualifier.
Here are the final Group standings:
1. Canada (9 points, 3–0–0–0 record)
2. Switzerland (5 points, 1–1–1–0 record)
3. Czechia (4 points, 1–0–1–1 record)
4. France (0 points, 0–0–3–0 record)
1. Slovakia (6 points, 2–0–1–0 record)
2. Finland (6 points, 2–0–1–0 record)
3. Sweden (6 points, 2–0–1–0 record)
4. Italy (0 points, 0–0–3–0 record)
1. United States (9 points, 3–0–0–0 record)
2. Germany (3 points, 1–0–0–2 record)
3. Denmark (3 points, 1–0–0–2 record)
4. Latvia (3 points, 1–0–0–2 record)
With the results now in, here's a complete look at the men’s hockey bracket for the 2026 Winter Olympics playoffs. Teams will be reseeded after the quarterfinals:
Additionally, here’s a look at when each of the remaining playoff games will be played in Milan:
Tuesday, Feb. 17
No. 6 Germany vs. No. 11 France — 6:10 a.m. ET
No. 5 Switzerland vs. No. 12 Italy — 6:10 a.m. ET
No. 8 Czechia vs. No. 9 Denmark — 10:40 a.m. ET
No. 7 Sweden vs. No. 10 Latvia — 3:10 p.m. ET
Wednesday, Feb. 18
TBD (winner of Germany vs. France) vs. No. 3 Slovakia — 6:10 a.m. ET
TBD (winner of Czechia vs. Denmark) vs. No. 1 Canada — 10:40 a.m. ET
TBD (winner of Switzerland vs. Italy) vs. No. 4 Finland — 12:10 p.m. ET
TBD (winner of Sweden vs. Latvia) vs. No. 2 United States — 3:10 p.m. ET
Friday, Feb. 20
TBD vs. TBD — 10:40 a.m. ET
TBD vs. TBD — 3:10 p.m. ET
Saturday, Feb. 21
TBD vs. TBD — 2:40 p.m. ET
Sunday, Feb. 22
TBD vs. TBD — 8:10 a.m. ET
Mike Kadlick is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the New England Patriots for WEEI sports radio in Boston and continues to do so for CLNS Media. He has a master's in public relations from Boston University. Kadlick is also an avid runner and a proud lover of all things pizza.
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