american men

The U.S. men’s hockey team edged out Slovakia with a 6-2 victory on Friday, securing a spot in the Olympic gold medal showdown. against Canada. The two sides will face off on Sunday.

Jack Hughes scored two goals, including one with an outstanding individual effort. The United States had no problems against the Slovaks, who went on an improbable run and were simply outplayed.

It is the first time in 16 years that the US men’s hockey team has advanced to the gold medal game.

The last time the United States won gold in men’s hockey was the Team “Miracle on Ice” at the 1980 Winter Olympics, when the United States beat the Soviet Union 4-3.

In 2010, the United States took silver after losing to Canada in overtime thanks to Sidney Crosby’s famous golden goal. Crosby’s status is uncertain this time after being injured in the quarterfinals on Wednesday and not playing on Friday against Finland.

Canada men’s hockey team beat Finland 3-2 in the semifinals on Friday. Finland and Slovakia will play for bronze on Saturday. Slovakia is seeking only its second hockey medal in the country’s history after achieving its first with a third-place finish in Beijing in 2022.

A year ago, the United States and Canada played two memorable games in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

That NHL-hosted event ended a nearly decade-long drought without an international tournament featuring the world’s best hockey players. Three fights in the first nine seconds of the first meeting put the 4 Nations in the spotlight, and their epic final won by Canada in overtime only built anticipation for the Olympics.

The United States is playing for gold after the semifinals were much easier than the quarterfinals against Sweden, when extra time was needed to survive a scare. Dylan Larkin, Tage Thompson, Hughes and Eichel scored the four goals on 23 shots that chased Samuel Hlavaj out of the Slovakia net midway through the second half.

Thompson, one of the few newcomers not to play in the 4 Nations, exited later in the second after blocking a shot. According to the NBC broadcast, he was held the rest of the way.

Hughes scored his second just after a power play expired, and Brady Tkachuk scored on a breakaway with just over nine minutes left to give him more breathing room.

Goalkeeper Connor Hellebuyck did his job and his teammates outscored Slovakia by a substantial margin. Everything he has done at the Olympics has validated coach Mike Sullivan’s decision to choose Hellebuyck as the American starter over Jake Oettinger and Jeremy Swayman.

The U.S. men’s victory comes a day after the U.S. women’s team defeated Canada to win gold in a exciting 2-1 comeback in extra time.

USA men’s hockey defeated Sweden 2-1 in overtime in their quarterfinals on Wednesday.

In last weekend’s group stage, the U.S. beat Denmark 6-3 after overcoming an earlier 2-1 first-half deficit. On February 12, the United States opened the Olympic Games with beating Latvia 5-1.

It is the first time since 2014 that NHL players are eligible to compete in the Olympic Games. The league opted out of the 2022 Olympics due to COVID-19 and restricted players in 2018, saying the games would disrupt the NHL season.