USA gold sweeter because of who it beat, who it was playing for
USA gold sweeter because of who it beat, who it was playing for
Helene St. James, Detroit Free PressSun, February 22, 2026 at 7:22 PM UTC
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MILAN - The gold medal meant more because of who ended up with silver. That's how much it meant to the USA men's hockey team to win the last game of the 2026 Winter Olympics, to join one of the most elite groups in hockey.
"It's the best feeling in the world," Dylan Larkin said. "To do it in this jersey and against that team with our history of not being able to beat those guys. It's incredible."
USA men had just made history, winning the gold medal 46 years on the nose after the "Miracle On Ice" squad upset the Soviet Union at the 1980 Lake Placid Games. Outplayed in regulation – Connor Hellebuyck made 41 saves - all it took was 1:41 of 3-on-3 overtime for Jack Hughes to capitalize on a turnover and clinch a victory.
"It feels amazing," Zach Werenski said. "I don't think it's sunk in yet. It's a very special group to be a part of, and any time you get to wear these colors and represent your country, it's a huge honor."
United States players celebrate after defeating Canada in the men's hockey gold medal game.
More: USA miracle on ice again, beats Canada for men's hockey Olympic gold
The day before the game, USA coach Mike Sullivan had told his players that "there's 36 American-born hockey players that have gold medals," impressing upon them what was at stake Sunday. USA had faced Canada twice before for gold in Olympics with NHL players, in 2002 and 2010, and lost.
They exorcised that demon at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on a spring-like day, before an audience that appeared to have more Canadian fans but was loudest at the end when USA players shook off their gear and mobbed one another, smiling, huggling, embracing, celebrating.
"It’s incredible," Jack Eichel said. "I think this just means so much to all of us and USA Hockey, just so much pride in wearing this jersey and being able to do something special and create our own story here. It’s been a long time since USA Hockey was on top of the hockey world. We’re really proud of this moment. I just can’t say enough about the group."
The Americans had a good start, but in the second and third periods, they looked gassed. Each team had played five games to arrive in the final, the only difference being USA playing at 9:10 p.m. local time in all of their games. They were the first to score, with Matt Boldy flipping the puck to himself as he split Canada's top defense pair of Cale Makar and Devon Toews, forging a path to score on Jordan Binnington.
"I was just trying to find a way to get up the middle and make it hard on him," Boldy said. "Sometimes it goes like that. You get a good bounce, and the puck follows you and you're able to kind of sneak through."
That was six minutes into the first period. USA protected that lead until midway through the second period, when Makar fired a shot from the right circle that eluded Hellebuyck.
He wasn't giving up a second one, frustrating the Canadians. Captain Sidney Crosby was unavailable after injuring his right leg in the quarterfinals, but they lacked neither talent nor speed against the Americans.
"I thought it was a flawless performance by a group of players that gave nothing but red and white for three periods plus of hockey," Canada coach Jon Cooper said. "I couldn’t be more proud of the group. They did everything we asked of them and more. Executed our plan. Just some days it’s just not meant to be. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be today but but wasn’t because this team stood on their toes. They were exceptional.”
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But in the end, exceptional earned silver when Hughes scored the golden goal 1:41 into overtime. Zach Werenski stripped Nathan MacKinnon of the puck in the right face-off circle and passed to Hughes, who fired a wrist shot that will go down in hockey history. Hughes erupted in a smile, showing the damage to his teeth from Sam Bennett's high-sticking work.
Red, white, blue and then, gold.
"Representing the USA, it’s been an honor of a lifetime doing this on this stage," Werenski said. "We felt the support from back home. We felt it in the village, we felt it from all the other athletes, around the city, tonight in the building. I feel like we maybe united the country, and that says something."
As close as family
The sense of history tied the team together. They arrived in Milan on Feb. 8, embraced life in the athletes village, two to a room so small Jake Oettinger described it as "sleeping six inches apart," from his roommate, Jeremy Swayman. Matthew Tkachuk rarely went a day without noting how loudly his brother, Brady, snores.
"We were so close, it felt like a family," Quinn Hughes said. "I was able to room with Jack for two weeks and it was very special for me. Right across the hall were the Tkachuks and they left their door open the entire two weeks, they never closed it. Just to have all the guys there on the same floor was special. We'd always hang out in the cafeteria together and meet different athletes and whatnot . To me, spending time in the village with these guys, it was one of favorite experiences of this whole thing. I really enjoyed the village."
Goggles and whiskey
Auston Matthews and the Hughes brother joined Sullivan in the press conference, their hair slick from champagne, goggles still on thier heads. They hydrated with beer. Sullivan smiled.
This was the moment he and general manager Bill Guerin had in mind when they built the roster.
"One of the things that Billy Guerin and I talked about from the very beginning was trying to build a team in the true sense of the world," Sullivan said. "We looked at a deep group of American talent, and these decisions were very difficult. If you look at how this group was constructed, there was a thought process that we had players that could play in all situations.
"And maybe the most important aspect of it is just the character of the group, the personality of the team. The team was built with personality in mind. We were loaded with personality. There are whiskey drinkers and milk drinkers, and we all have whiskey drinkers on the team."
This is for a lot of people
The victory extended far beyond the arena, far beyond the locker room, the people directly involved. It was for Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, who were killed by a suspected drunk driver while they were bicycling on Aug. 29, 2024.
"This is something John would have been at," Werenski said. "And to see his family here supporting us and seeing his kids, bringing them on the ice, we talked about playing for him, making him proud and I think we did that. Super special to see them and to have kids on the ice, he was a huge part of USA Hockey."
It was for Jim Johannson, the former USA hockey executive who passed away in 2018. It was the best feeling in the world because of everyone it involved.
"Just to get it done, to score that big goal that USA Hockey, guys that wore this jersey before, have been missing," Larkin said. "It’s just an incredible feeling. This is for a lot of people. This is for the guys who wore this jersey before us. Johnny Gaudreau especially. Jim Johansson. All those people should be here. Johnny especially. Matty his brother. To get it done today, it’s just an unbelievable feeling.’’
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: USA hockey gold sweet because of who it beat, who team played for
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