By Maximilien Lai, Y10
The wait is finally over. For the first time in 12 years, NHL players have arrived at an Olympic venue to compete in a long-awaited return.
Around 150 players from all 32 NHL teams are competing for an illustrious prize.
The build-up to the first games was anything but smooth, featuring injuries, tensions and safety concerns. Construction delays at Milan’s Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena and the secondary Rho facility raised uncertainty about whether NHL players would even attend. NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly bluntly stated, “If NHL players feel the quality of the ice at the upcoming Olympics in Milan isn’t safe, then we’re not going to play.”
Despite this, the world was ready to witness best-on-best hockey — and so were the players. Canadian all-star captain and two-time gold medallist Sidney Crosby shrugged off concerns, saying, “I’m aware of it, but it’s one of those things — it’s out of your control. I’m happy that we’re going to have the opportunity to go to the Olympics. Regardless of what the size of the rink is or how that shakes out, the main thing is that it gets done and it’s the same for everyone,” summing up the general attitude.
“I mean, we all grew up playing on ponds back in Canada, so I’m sure that whatever gets thrown at them, they’re going to adapt and they’re going to enjoy it,” said Canadian hockey player James Livingston regarding the ice conditions ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Now that the games have started, not everything seems to be going to plan. Silver-medal favourites USA were held to 2–1 by the underdog Danes before finally pulling away to secure a 6–3 win. Analysts reported that key players such as Auston Matthews and Zach Werenski seemed “invisible” and needed to make more of an impact. Equally, goaltender Jeremy Swayman delivered a lacklustre performance, letting in an unscreened, undeflected shot from over 93 feet away.
Jack Eichel reflected, “It’s a 60-minute game. They had a few bounces go their way in the first period. Give them credit , they played really hard.” He later added, “I thought the whole group really stepped up in the third period. Our team’s going to continue to get better as this tournament goes on.”
Additionally, Finland’s stacked roster fell to Slovakia in a surprising 4–1 defeat. Despite dominating play and outshooting their opponents 40–12, Slovak netminder Samuel Hlavaj turned aside 39 shots in a stellar performance. “We had a lot of chances and couldn’t capitalise,” admitted Miro Heiskanen, alternate captain of the Dallas Stars. Nevertheless, he remained confident in Finland’s chances. The Finns quickly rebounded from the upset, defeating favourites Sweden 4–1 before hammering host nation Italy 11–0.
Elsewhere, Canada made its dominance clear. They routed Czechia 5–0, steamrolled Switzerland 5–1, and cruised to a 10–2 victory over France, showcasing their superstar talent. Connor McDavid, widely regarded as the best player in the National Hockey League and the league’s leading scorer with 96 points in 53 games, recorded three points in each contest. Canada boasts the tournament’s most formidable roster, featuring the NHL’s top three goal scorers on the same line: McDavid (96 points), Nathan MacKinnon (93 points), and Macklin Celebrini (81 points at just 19 years old).
Despite Canada’s commanding performances, the excitement is far from over, with the final preliminary games still to be played.
