NHL
2026 Olympic
Hockey
Sweden will now have to play a do-or-die game in the qualification playoffs on Tuesday in order to reach the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Bruce Bennett / Getty Images
MILAN — Four days into the men’s Olympic tournament and Sweden still hasn’t quite found the kind of form that fellow powerhouses Canada and the U.S. have shown out of the gates.
Sweden’s star-studded NHL roster finally showed some teeth Saturday, potentially a promising step forward even if the path ahead got thornier for them.
As in, having to play an extra game in the Qualification Playoffs.
Advertisement
A 5-3 win over pesky Slovakia felt almost like a loss thanks to a complicated tiebreaker scenario that saw the Swedes having to pull goalie Jacob Markstrom in the final seconds in order to try and regain the three-goal lead they needed to win Group B.
Confused? You’re not alone.
“Yeah, it’s an odd game that way,’’ Sweden captain Gabriel Landeskog said postgame. “You feel like you’re playing really well and you win the game by two but at the same time you lose the game? So it’s weird. But it is what it is.”
Technically, they didn’t lose the game, but they lost the tiebreaker.
“I don’t know if I’ve been in a game like that. It’s weird,’’ said Sweden defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson.
So mixed feelings as far as playing better than 24 hours earlier in the loss to rival Finland, but leaving the arena without the first-place seeding that was on the line.
“Yeah, it’s a tough ending obviously,’’ said alternate captain Victor Hedman. “Coming all the way back and getting that lead and getting that power play and hitting the inside post and they capitalize. Tough pill to swallow. But we will regroup. We’ll be ready for our next challenge.’’
While the players knew about the tiebreaker scenario, it was still odd to be part of pulling Jacob Markstrom when up by two goals. It’s counter-intuitive on so many levels yet was necessary.
“It’s really tough obviously coming into the game knowing you have to win by a certain amount of goals,’’ said winger Adrian Kempe, who scored on the power play. “And then you’re up, all of a sudden you’re down but you’re still up in the game. A lot of things going on. That’s just the way it is. We have to look at it in a positive way: We played a way better game today than we did yesterday. Something to build on.’’
Slovakia, Finland and Sweden all finished with 2-1-0 records but ranked 1-2-3 in that order in Group B based on the tiebreaking formula. Which means a do-or-die Qualification Playoff game for the Swedes on Tuesday to gain entry to Wednesday’s quarterfinal.
“We got to win out here,” Hedman said. “Now the fun starts.”
Advertisement
Germany found itself in the same position back at the 2010 Olympics, needing a Qualifying Playoff win over Switzerland to reach the quarterfinals and well, we know how the rest went.
So perhaps it’s not the worst thing in the end to play the extra game if it means giving Sweden another chance to bring their game to a higher level.
“I mean hockey is not a straightforward sport, it never has been,’’ Hedman said. “We’ll take whatever card we’re dealt going into the next game. You got to embrace the opportunity to play in the Olympics.’’
The Swedes launched 51 shots on goal Saturday and definitely presented a more cohesive offensive attack. There were positive signs all over the place, including Elias Pettersson announcing himself in the tournament with a pair of goals, Lucas Raymond had his best game and scored, the lineup changes and forward lines tweaks by head coach Sam Hallam seem to produce the desired results.
“I liked the way we played today,’’ said Hallam. “Pretty disappointed both with the result and our performance yesterday. The guys showed up in a much better way today. I think we grew.’’
Marcus Johansson and Hampus Lindholm played their first games, Markstom replaced Filip Gustavsson in goal, Jesper Bratt was pushed down to the 13th forward spot, Filip Forsberg was elevated in the lineup, as well as the captain, Landeskog, who went from fourth line to second line. Credit to Hallam for not being stubborn and instead embracing change after the loss to Finland.
“I mean, any time you lose a game and any time you’re not happy with the way you’re playing, you’re going to make tweaks,’’ said Landeskog. “That’s the way it is. I thought all the lines played hard today, the guys who stepped in did a great job. Marky played well in net, tough bounce at the end.’’
Rasmus Andersson and Elias Lindholm came out of the lineup as part of all those changes.
Advertisement
“I felt that Marcus Johansson could come in and give us some speed and some skate,’’ said Hallam. “And I like the balance we had today over our line. Now we have two or three days here coming up. Let’s see how the guys who didn’t dress today, how they feel. We’ll see next week.”
Despite the odd ending to the game and the realization that they have to play an extra game, Sweden can take solace in what might be a positive step in their overall game that gets them to the promised land.
“I saw a lot of really good improvements today,’’ said Landeskog. “All the areas where we wanted to be better, I thought we were today. Defensively I thought we kept them to the outside, we were quick to contact in the D zone, offensively I think we did a better job hanging onto pucks. Obviously they’re a heavy team down low but I thought we did a good job spreading them out and creating some scoring chances. Even at 5-2, we had chances for 6-2 and 7-2 … the margins for error are slim in tournaments like this.’’
Added Hedman: “That’s a good sign for our group. … Everyone contributed. Marky played great. A lot to build on.’’
Markstrom might stay in net after a mostly solid performance. The New Jersey Devils goalie saw a team that was night and day from Friday’s loss to Finland.
“It’s a lot of stuff that’s that we really improved on,’’ said Markstrom. “I think looking at video of yesterday’s game and today game, I think it’s a different picture. And I thought the guys battled hard. They blocked shots. They made fast plays, they skated, they hit, our power play was really good. We did all the right things to score five goals and you win the hockey game, but it feels like a loss.”
One area the Swedes have to clean up is discipline. They took 14 minutes in penalties Saturday, Rasmus Dahlin’s first-period penalty on Milos Kelemen was emblematic of that issue on this day. That’s the kind of dumb penalty you can’t take on this Olympic stage.
“We’re taking too many penalties out there and that cost us,’’ said Hallam.
Echoed Hedman:
“We got to stay out of the box, we took way too many penalties. If we stay out of the box and play five-on-five, we’re a tough team to beat.’’
Is Sweden there yet? Not quite. And now there’s no more practice games. It’s win or go home.
Spot the pattern. Connect the terms
Find the hidden link between sports terms
Play today's puzzle
Pierre LeBrun has been a senior NHL columnist for The Athletic since 2017. He has been an NHL Insider for TSN since 2011 following six years as a panelist on Hockey Night In Canada. He also appears regularly on RDS in Montreal. Pierre previously covered the NHL for ESPN.com and The Canadian Press. Follow Pierre on Twitter @PierreVLeBrun
Hockey News