The march towards gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics for the USA men’s ice hockey team continues on Friday, Feb. 20. That trek continues with a semifinal against Slovakia in Milan, Italy.
USA and Slovakia will drop the puck at 3:10 p.m. (ET)
And maybe there’s some extra motivation after the US women’s hockey rallied to pull out a thrilling 2-1 overtime win over Canada on Thursday to claim gold.
The US men are coming off a thrilling overtime win of their own after Quinn Hughes’ winning goal lifted his team to a 2-1 win over Sweden on Wednesday.
Canada and Finland are meeting in the other semi-final, which started at 10:40 a.m. (ET).
Marshfield’s Mike Sullivan is the coach for Team USA.
Team USA was dominant en route to a 6-2 win over Slovakia. USA will play Canada for gold on Sunday. Finland and Slovakia will battle for bronze on Saturday.
Slovakia adds a second goal but USA leads 6-2 as we have less than 5 minutes remaining.
Brady Tkachuk missed a breakaway chance earlier in the period, but doesn’t miss twice. He finished with a backhand shot to put USA up 6-1.
USA leads 5-1 with less than 10 minutes remaining.
The USA mishandles a puck behind the net and Slovakia takes advantage to get on the scoreboard. USA leads 5-1 with less than 15 minutes remaining in the third period.
USA’s Tage Thompson has been ruled out for the third period due to precautionary reasons. NBC showed him walking gingerly. He didn’t walk out with the team for the third period. Thompson scored a goal earlier in the game.
USA leads 5-0 as the third period gets started. The US will be on the power play.
The rout is on her for Team USA. US leads 5-0 heading into the third period. They’re 20 minutes from locking up a spot in Sunday’s gold-medal game.
Jack Hughes tallies his second goal of the period right as a Slovakia penalty ends. The US leads 5-0 with 1:36 left in the second period.
And 19 seconds later, Jack Eichel scores. The US leads 4-0 with 7:29 left in the second period.
Slovakia is going to make a goalie change. Stanislav Skorvanek replaces Samuel Hlavaj. Hlavaj was playing well and stopped 19 of 23 shots he faced.
Jack Hughes effortless skates past a Slovakian defender and buried a perfectly-placed shot under the far corner of the net. USA leads 3-0 with less than 8 minutes to play in the third period.
USA appears to score, but the goal is quickly waved off as Jake Geuntzel kicks the puck into the net.
Auston Matthews rings a shot off early into a power-play chance and later gets denied on a great save by Samuel Hlavaj. Hlavag was Slovakia’s best penalty killer there, stopping five shots while short-handed. USA leads 2-0 with less than 9 minutes left in the second period.
Hlavaj plays in the AHL for the Iowa Wild.
You might know that brothers Jack and Quinn Hughes are two pivotal players for the USA men’s hockey team. But they won’t be the first in their family to win gold at these Olympics. Their mother, Ellen Weinberg-Hughes, serves as an advisor for the US women’s ice hockey. On Thursday, the brothers were in attendance of the women’s game as USA defeated Canada.
Weinberg-Hughes is an accomplished hockey player herself. She played at the University of New Hampshire and represented Team USA in the 1992 IIHF Women’s World Championship as a defenseman.
Quinn Hughes scored the overtime winner for USA on Wednesday against Sweden. The Minnesota Wild defenseman has gone viral during the Olympics for his stoic approach on the bench. Jack Hughes, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, plays for the New Jersey Devils.
The power play is short-lived as Auston Matthews gets called for a hooking penalty. Neither side can score on 4-on-4 or during Slovakia’s short power play. USA leads 2-0 with under 17 minutes left in the second period.
A roughing penalty on Slovakia, down by USA’s Brady Tkachuk, gives USA its second power play of the day.
T.J. Oshie had an unforgettable stint with the US men’s hockey team. During the 2014 Winter Olympics, he earned the nickname ‘T.J. Sochi.’ He led the US to a shootout win over Russia. Back then, Olympic rules said that after the first three shooters went, players could be re-used in the shootout. The US recycled Oshie six times during the shootout and he scored four goals.
Oshie started his NHL career with the St. Louis Blues before finding his home with the Washington Capitals. In 2018, he helped the Capitals win the Stanley Cup.
Oshie, now 39, returned last June. Oshie is working as an analyst for NBC during the Olympics.
Goals from Tage Thompson and Dylan Larkin have the US up 2-0 after 20 minutes. USA killed off a pair of Slovakia power plays, while the US scored on their man-advantage opportunity.
Slovakia goes 0-for-2 on the power play, but the US doesn’t not return the favor Tage Thompson finds some space from a tough angle and puts the US up 2-0 late in the second period.
That was Thompson’s third goal of the Olympics. He did not play in the Four Nations last year. Thompson is a 6-6, 220-pound center for the Buffalo Sabres. The 28-year-old has 30 goals and 29 assists in the NHL this season.
USA is now 12-for-12 when it comes to killing penalties. USA is the only team in the tournament to not surrender a power-play goal. USA leads 1-0 with less than 6 minutes left in the first period.
USA gets called for a delay-of-game penalty. USA leads 1-0 with 8:02 left in the first period.
USA is now 11-for-11 when it comes to killing penalties. The US even had a strong scoring chance when Dylan Larkin nearly potted his second. USA leads 1-0 with less than 9 minutes remaining in the first period.
With the US leading 1-0 with 11:09 left in the first period, Boston Bruin Charlie McAvoy will go to the penalty box for a 2-minute minor for goaltender interference.
USA takes advantage of a bad Slovakia change and Dylan Larkin scores to take a 1-0 with 15:41 left in the first period. That’s his second goal of the Olympics.
The semi-final from Milan, Italy is underway. The winner advances to the gold-medal game against Sunday.
The winner will advance to the gold-medal game to play Canada on Sunday, Feb. 22 at 8:10 a.m. The loser battles Finland for bronze on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 2:40 p.m.
Slovakia is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It borders Poland (to the north), Ukraine (east), Hungary (south), Austria (west) and Czech Republic (northwest).
It’s a mostly mountainous territory with a population over 5.4 million people. Bratislava is the capital and largest city in Slovakia and has a population just under 500,000.
Connor Hellebuyck will start in goal once again for Team USA. He’s posted the lowest goals-against average in the Olympics at 0.98 and has a save percentage of 95.77%. He’s stopped 68 of the 71 shots he’s faced.
Slovakia is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It borders Poland (to the north), Ukraine (east), Hungary (south), Austria (west) and Czech Republic (northwest).
It’s a mostly mountainous territory with a population over 5.4 million people. Bratislava is the capital and largest city in Slovakia and has a population just under 500,000.
The Olympic rink in Milan measures 196.85 feet long by 85.3 feet wide, which is slightly smaller in length than the standard 200-foot by 85-foot NHL rink.
From a Dec. 8 statement by the International Ice Hockey Federation regarding the rink dimensions for Milano Cortina 2026:
“While these dimensions differ slightly from a typical NHL rink, they are consistent with IIHF regulations, match the rink size used at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and are fully consistent with the dimensions the NHL requires as part of its Global Series Game arena specifications.”
Play-by-play announcer Kenny Albert is likely a familiar voice to viewers. That’s because he calls each of the four major sports. Albert received praise for his call of Megan Keller’s winning goal as the US women won gold on Thursday in thrilling fashion. He also received praise for his call of Quinn Hughes’ OT winner on Wednesday.
Albert, a native of New York City, is the son of legendary broadcaster Marv Albert.
Albert currently does play-by-play for the New York Rangers (NHL), calls NFL and MLB games for Fox. He’s also a fill-in broadcaster for the New York Knicks (NBA).
Slovakia only has seven players currently playing in the NHL.
Juraj Slafkovsky leads Slovakia with 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists) in Olympic play. The 21-year-old is starring at left wing for the Montreal Canadiens. He’s scored 21 goals and 24 assists this season and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. Picked one spot after him was Simon Nemec, a standout defenseman for the New Jersey Devils. He’s posted 8 goals and 12 assists this season.
Former NHL veteran Tomas Tatar is Slovakia’s captain. He scored 227 goals across 927 NHL games while playing for the Detroit Red Wings, Vegas Golden Knights, Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, Colorado Avalanche and Seattle Kraken.
The full list of Slovakia’s NHL players:
Dalibor Dvorsky – St. Louis Blues
Simon Nemec – New Jersey Devils
Juraj Slafkovsky – Montreal Canadiens
Martin Fehervary – Washington Capitals
Martin Pospisil – Calgary Flames
Erik Cernak – Tampa Bay Lightning
Pavol Regenda – San Jose Sharks
Former Boston Bruin Brad Marchand will be playing for his Olympic gold medal on Sunday. The 37-year-old is the oldest NHL player making his Olympic debut at the 2026 games.
A native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Marchand helped the Bruins win the Stanley Cup in 2011. After spending the first 15-and-a-half years of his NHL career in Boston, he was traded to the Florida Panthers during the 2024-2025 season. He then helped Florida win the Stanley Cup. Marchand has played in 1,146 NHL regular-season games and has 449 goals and 581 assists.
Finland’s 2-0 second-period lead doesn’t hold up and Canada wins 3-2 to advance to the gold-medal game. Finland will play in the bronze-medal game on Saturday. Nathan MacKinnon scored the winning goal with 35 seconds remaining.
With 35 seconds remaining, Nathan MacKinnon scores a power-play goal to give Canada a 3-2 lead. Canada trailed 2-0 late in the second before scoring three unanswered goals. Finland challenes whether Canada is on the goal. The call on the ice is confirmed and the goal counts. The unsuccessful challenge also results in a Finland penalty.
No. 6 Lukas Cingel, F
No. 8 Oliver Okuliar, F
No. 11 Milos Kelemen, F
No. 14 Peter Ceresnak, D
No. 15 Dalibor Dvorsky, F
No. 17 Simon Nemec, D
No. 20 Juraj Slafkovsky, F
No. 21 Adam Ruzicka, F
No. 23 Adam Liska, F
No. 28 Martin Gernat, D
No. 29 Michal Ivan, D
No. 30 Adam Gajan, G
No. 31 Samuel Hlavaj, G
No. 33 Stanislav Skorvanek, G
No. 34 Peter Cehlarik, F
No. 42 Martin Fehervary, D
No. 49 Samuel Takac, F
No. 52 Martin Marincin, D
No. 64 Patrik Koch, D
No. 76 Martin Pospisil, F
No. 79 Libor Hudacek, F
No. 81 Erik Cernak, D
No. 84 Pavol Regenda, F
No. 90 Tomas Tatar, F
No. 91 Matus Suker, F
1 Jeremy Swayman, G
2 Jackson LaCombe, D
8 Zach Werenski, D
9 Jack Eichel, F
10 J.T. Miller, F
12 Matt Boldy, F
14 Brock Faber, D
15 Noah Hanifin, D
16 Vincent Trocheck, F
19 Matthew Tkachuk, F
21 Dylan Larkin, F
29 Brock Nelson, F
34 Auston Matthews, F
37 Connor Hellebuyck, G
43 Quinn Hughes, D
59 Jake Guentzel, F
72 Tage Thompson, F
74 Jaccob Slavin, D
81 Kyle Connor, F
85 Jake Sanderson, D
86 Jack Hughes, F
91 Clayton Keller, F
USA has won gold medal in men’s olympic hockey twice – 1960 and 1980. Yes, the last US team to win gold was the ‘Miracle on Ice’ team coached by Herb Brooks in 1980.
Fighting is not allowed in International Ice Hockey Federation rules.
“Fighting is not part of international ice hockey’s DNA,” the organization states in Rule 46 of the IIHF rulebook.
“Players who willingly, participate in a ‘brawl/fight’ so-called ‘willing combatants,’ shall be penalized accordingly by the referee(s) and may be ejected from the game,” the rulebook says. “Further supplementary discipline may be imposed.”
Semifinals – Friday, Feb. 20
Bronze-medal game – Saturday, Feb. 21
Gold-medal game – Sunday, Feb. 22
Pittsburgh Penguins star and Canada captain Sidney Crosby is not playing against Finland after suffering a lower-body injury in the quarter-final on Wednesday. Connor McDavid filled Crosby’s shoes as captain. Crosby has 2 goals and 4 assists in Olympic play so far.
Finland currently leads Canada, 2-1, after two periods.
We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, though, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.
Hockey News