The ultimate hockey rivalry returns to the Olympic stage Sunday morning at the Santagiulia Arena. The USA faces Canada for gold at Milano Cortina 2026 in a rematch of last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off championship game that captivated the hockey world.
Team USA seeks revenge Sunday in what represents the most highly anticipated Olympic hockey game since those same nations met for gold in Vancouver. Puck drops at 8:10 a.m. ET with both teams chasing dramatically different outcomes from their Milano Cortina 2026 campaigns.
4 Nations Championship Loss Still Stings Team USA
It would be an understatement to say that last year’s 4 Nations Face-off still hurt Team USA. Canada won that February 20, 2025, meeting at TD Garden in Boston when
Connor McDavid scored at 8:18 of overtime to deliver a 3-2 victory.
The triumph marked Canada’s third consecutive winner-take-all victory over the USA in best-on-best competition following gold medal wins at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics and 2010 Vancouver Olympics. With last year’s loss fresh in their minds, Team USA wants nothing but revenge.
In their road to redemption, they already made short work of Germany, Denmark, and Latvia before moving on to demolish tournament favorites Sweden and dark horses Slovakia in the QFs and Semis.
But they know that if they don’t win on Sunday, then none of this matters.
Nobody understands this better than Golden Knights center Jack Eichel. The forward was part of the squad last year and knew how much that overtime loss hurt his team. But this time around, Team USA is in full power, and he knows what it takes to beat their lifelong rivals.
“It was a great opportunity for us last year, and we weren’t able to get the job done,” Eichel said.
“It was a tight game, one play here or there. They end up making the extra play, and they were the champions of that tournament. It’s a great opportunity for us to go win this one. “
Canada holds a commanding edge in Olympic meetings between these rivals. The teams have faced each other 19 times in Olympic competition, with Canada posting a 12-4-3 record. They have contested three gold medal games, with Canada winning each matchup in 1920, 200,2 and 2010.
Team USA last captured Olympic gold at the 1980 Lake Placid Games during the Miracle on Ice tournament. Canada pursues its third consecutive Olympic title in tournaments featuring NHL players after triumphs in 2002, 2010, and 2014.
Both teams advanced to the final with convincing victories in the semifinals on Friday. Canada rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat defending champion Finland 3-2, while the USA cruised past Slovakia 6-2 behind balanced scoring and strong goaltending from Connor Hellebuyck.
The women’s gold medal game on Thursday featured these same nations, with Team USA prevailing 2-1 in overtime. Bronze medal action continues Saturday when Finland faces Slovakia at 2:40 p.m. ET before Sunday’s championship showdown determines Olympic supremacy between hockey’s greatest rivals.
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