Olympic Hockey: Auston Matthews looks to lead USA to 1st men’s hockey gold since 1980
Auston Matthews will be looking to lead the United States to its first Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey since 1980. Matthews and the United States square off against
Canada, in a rematch of last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off Final, where Canada emerged victorious in overtime.
Matthews was the United States’ best player through the preliminary round. The 28-year-old has recorded three goals and six points in five games prior to Sunday’s final, primarily lined up with Jake Guentzel and Matt Boldy. Quinn Hughes leads all United States players in points, and will likely be named to the tournament’s all-star team. Hughes and Charlie McAvoy operate as the United States’ standout pairing, while Zach Werenski has been winning his minutes handily alongside Jake Sanderson. A mobile, potent United States blue line could potentially give Canada fits off the rush.
Brady and Matthew Tkachuk headline the first line, with Jack Eichel at centre. Jack Hughes caught fire during the semifinal victory over Slovakia, and has been paired with Dylan Larkin and Tage Thompson. J.T. Miller, Brock Nelson and Vincent Trocheck round out the fourth line.
Canada survived a close call against Finland, rallying in the third period for a 3-2 victory. Connor McDavid leads all players in scoring with two goals and 13 points, while Macklin Celebrini leads all players with five goals, while ranking second only to McDavid with 10 points. McDavid and Celebrini have been Canada’s standout players, and look for Nathan MacKinnon to join the line during occasional shifts, in place of Tom Wilson. MacKinnon will likely centre Bo Horvat and Seth Jarvis, while Nick Suzuki mans the third line with Mitch Marner and Mark Stone on the wings. Sam Bennett will operate as the fourth-line centre with Brandon Hagel and Brad Marchand as his linemates.
Cale Makar has shown flashes of his gamebreaking talent throughout the tournament, and will be paired with Devon Toews again on Canada’s top pairing. Travis Sanheim played his best game of the tournament in the semifinal alongside Drew Doughty. And while Colton Parayko has struggled throughout the event, Thomas Harley has arguably been Canada’s best defenceman, a steadying presence on the blue line.
Sidney Crosby will be a
game-time decision for Canada. Crosby was held out of Canada’s semifinal victory over Finland on Saturday. Canada head coach Jon Cooper ruled out the possibility of dressing Crosby as a 13th forward in a decoy role.
“It’s too important,” Cooper said via
TSN’s Mark Masters. “We don’t want to have somebody in there as an inspiration when we could have a player capable of helping. You never know if guys are going to get hurt. He wouldn’t want to do that either.”
PRESENTED BY DAILY FACEOFF’S OLYMPIC COVERAGE
Catch Every Goal from the 2026 Milan Games! The 2026 Milan Games are almost here, and the world’s best men’s and women’s hockey players are ready to battle for gold! The Nation Network is bringing you every game, every jaw-dropping save, and all the drama with live reaction streams and full recaps. Don’t miss a moment of Olympic hockey action—men’s, women’s, and everything in between—
on the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel. Subscribe now and stay on top of every play!
