Team USA has defeated Canada in overtime of the Milan Winter Olympics to win the gold medal. A heartbreak for Canadians and all of Canada, as a 2-1 overtime loss is hard to stomach.
From the moment the puck dropped until the end of the first period, the US had Canada on their heels and scored really early in the game to make it 1-0 off of Matt Boldy’s solo effort. Canada, through the entire Olympic playoff portion, had trailed in all the games, which, in the gold medal game, can’t happen.
In the second period, Canada showed who they were, dominating the US like it was nothing. The scoring chances, the puck movement, the physicality—the US could not keep up. The only one who could was goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who looked unstoppable, killing a 5-on-3 power play in the process. With under two minutes in the second, down 1-0, Cale Makar got Canada on the board and made it a 1-1 game heading into a tight third period.
Canada came out guns blazing, just like in the second, dominating every play. Canada had too many chances to take the lead in the third, with Nathan MacKinnon missing a wide-open net, which surely could’ve sealed the deal for the Canadians. An intense nail-biting third period led to what was going to be the craziest period of hockey, overtime.
In overtime, Canada took the puck first with the obvious pairing of MacKinnon, Makar, and captain Connor McDavid. Makar moves up, trying to get the bouncing puck as the US goes the other way three on one, with defenseman Zack Werenski sliding the puck over to Jack Hughes, who buries it and rips the hearts out of Team Canada’s throats. Canada could only look on as the Americans threw their helmets, sticks, and gloves up in the air, knowing they just beat one of, if not the best, teams ever assembled to win the gold medal in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
You can complain about it being three-on-three, missed calls, and bad luck, but in the end, the Americans have gold around their necks. The missed chances by McDavid and MacKinnon would certainly haunt them, and missing captain Sidney Crosby was definitely not easy.
The Americans got their revenge from last year’s Four Nations defeat to Canada in a bigger way, beating a country that owns the sport of hockey for one of the sport’s most coveted prizes, which many will never get to compete for in their lifetime: Olympic gold.
