Men's and women's hockey schedules for 2026 Milan Olympics released
The International Ice Hockey Federation unveiled the schedule Tuesday for the men's and women's tournaments at the 2026 Olympics in Milan and Cortina.
Women's hockey starts on Feb. 5 with the U.S. against Czechia and Canada versus Finland among the opening games. The U.S. and Canada renew their rivalry in the preliminary round on Feb. 10, and the gold-medal game is set for Feb. 19.
Men's hockey with the return of NHL players opens the following day with Finland facing Slovakia and host Italy against Sweden. Without Russia in the 12-team field, the U.S. is grouped with Germany, Latvia and Denmark and will play each of them in a round robin.
The U.S. opens Feb. 12 against Latvia, the same day Canada faces Czechia. The NHL's best are participating for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.
'It's great that the NHL players are back in the Olympics,' U.S. general manager Bill Guerin said. 'Obviously it's the biggest sports stage in the world, and we're all happy we're back involved.'
No teams are eliminated from group play on the men's side. The top four advance to the quarterfinals, with the remaining eight taking part in a qualification round.
Games will take place on NHL-sized rinks at Milano Santagiulia and Milano Rho arenas. The final is scheduled for Feb. 22 as the last event of the Olympics before the closing ceremony.
The schedule release came a day after the federations involved announced the first six players named to their respective rosters. The U.S. picked all skaters: forwards Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel and defensemen Quinn Hughes and Charlie McAvoy.
Finland is the defending Olympic champion from the Beijing bubble in 2022, when the NHL pulled out because of pandemic-related scheduling issues, and the Russians won in 2018. Canada has won the past two involving NHL players, and GM Doug Armstrong hopes for a third.
'I'm excited about our group,' Armstrong said. 'I know our group wants to go there and wants to put their best foot forward. There's no guarantees in this sport, but I know we're going to go with the right attitude.'
___
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Top 5 NHL Draft pick Cayden Lindstrom confirms he'll play at MSU next season
Top 5 NHL Draft pick Cayden Lindstrom confirms he'll play at MSU next season Michigan State hockey has officially landed a major prospect that was selected in the top five of last year's NHL Draft. Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reported on earlier this month that star forward Cayden Lindstrom has confirmed he'll play for Michigan State next year. Portzline reported earlier this offseason that Lindstrom was leaning towards joining Michigan State for next season, but his latest report on earlier this month now confirms that is the case. Lindstrom is a Canadian prospect who played major junior hockey for the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL and was the No. 4 pick by the Columbus Blue Jackets in last year's NHL Draft. After a back injury sidelined him for the 2024-25 season, he considered the college hockey route, a path not very common for Canadian major junior hockey players. The official addition of Lindstrom to an already loaded Spartans squad is great news for the Spartans. Michigan State is shaping up to once again be a preseason top five team and should again be in contention for the national championship in 2026. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
How to watch Monterrey vs Inter Milan FOR FREE: TV channel and live stream for Club World Cup today
Introduction: Cristian Chivu will take charge of Inter Milan for the first time against Monterrey at the Club World Cup (AP) The Cristian Chivu era officially begins at Inter Milan tonight as they kick off their Club World Cup campaign against Monterrey in California. The former long-serving Nerazzurri defender has returned to the San Siro as the replacement for Simone Inzaghi, who left his post just days after the 5-0 Champions League final thrashing by Paris Saint-Germain in Munich last month in order to become the new manager of Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal, who are also at this tournament. Advertisement Chivu had built up extensive coaching experience with Inter at youth level before a short-lived spell in charge at Serie A rivals Parma, with the ex-Romania international hired to return in the top job only last week after a failed pursuit of Cesc Fabregas at Como and links to the likes of Genoa's Patrick Vieira. The 44-year-old must immediately lift spirits at Inter after their Champions League final drubbing followed hot on the heels of relinquishing the Serie A title to former head coach Antonio Conte and Napoli on a dramatic final day in addition to being beaten by arch-rivals AC Milan in both the Coppa Italia semi-finals and Supercoppa Italiana final. Inter are in Group E at the Club World Cup, where Argentine giants River Plate are the early pacesetters after beating Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds 3-1 in Seattle earlier on Tuesday. Monterrey qualified for the inaugural expanded 32-team summer tournament in the United States as winners of the CONCACAF Champions League in 2021, joining Pachuca as one of only two Mexican clubs competing after Club Leon were removed and Club America lost a resulting play-off tie against Los Angeles FC. Advertisement They are captained by Sergio Ramos and coached by former Pep Guardiola assistant Domenec Torrent, who, like Chivu, is also new to the job, having been hired last month to succeed the sacked Martin Demichelis following Monterrey's loss to Toluca in the quarter-finals of the Clausura 2025. How to watch Monterrey vs Inter Milan TV channel and live stream: Monterrey vs Inter Milan is being shown live globally via DAZN, with all 63 matches at the Club World Cup made available to watch for free with a sign-up. Coverage begins at 1:30am BST ahead of a 2am BST kick-off - 6pm local time - at the iconic Rose Bowl in Pasadena. For DAZN subscribers and 'Freemium' members, the games are part of the existing subscription.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Roma linked again with Hudson-Odoi
Roma's transfer market is about to get into full swing as Gian Piero Gasperini has taken the reigns to the team. However, it remains to be seen who will handle the club's transfer business after the news of the dismissal of sporting director Florent Ghisolfi. Advertisement Despite this and the looming Financial Fair Play restrictions, Roma are reportedly very active ahead of the transfer window. According to English news portal Sunsport, Roma have once again set their sights on Nottingham Forest's Callum Hudson-Odoi. The player had already ended up on the Giallorossi's radar a few months ago. The former Chelsea player would fall into the category of players suitable for Gasperini's playing style and a first offer from Trigoria could soon arrive. Napoli and Manchester United are also interested in the midfielder. His value is around 25 million euros.
