Canucks' Kevin Lankinen and Finland lost 4-1 to Slovakia, while Elias Pettersson and Sweden won 5-2 against Italy in their first games of the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Slovakia opened the 2026 Winter Olympics with a decisive 4–1 victory over defending champion Finland, powered by two goals from Juraj Slafkovský and a 38-save performance from Samuel Hlavaj.

Goaltender Samuel Hlavaj played the hero for Slovakia, delivering a sensational performance that powered his team to a 4-1 win.

NHL players are returning to the Olympics for the first time since 2014. Here are the rosters and schedule, plus how to watch:

If Sweden and Finland aren't at the top of Group B at the conclusion of the preliminary round, then the Olympics will have turned upside down.

Men's and women's Olympic ice hockey games continue today with 10 total teams playing at the 2026 Winter Games. See the complete schedule.

Lehtonen is not the only player on Team Finland with Olympic experience. Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen was playing for HIFK in Liiga, Finland's top hockey league, and Seattle Kraken forward Eeli Tolvanen with Jokerit of the Kontinental Hockey League, when they were Lehtonen's teammates at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics.

Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games Men's Hockey Event The main event of the Olympic Winter Games is slotted to feature a competition among 12 participating teams in the 2026 Winter Olympics. These teams participating in the Winter Olympics shall be competing with other participants in different groups or categories.

Day 5 of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics included another eight gold medals being earned, headlined by Jordan Stolz of Team USA in the men's speedskating 1,000-meter. The American phenom entered the event as a heavy favorite,