A few hours after Tom Wilson threw down during Canada’s 10-2 shellacking of France, the Americans showed some bite of their own as they closed out their preliminary round slate against Germany.
Team USA entered Sunday’s tilt navigating a few question marks. The Americans came into the preliminary round finale with two wins under their belt, beating Latvia 5-1 to open the tournament and besting Denmark 6-3 on Saturday. But the performances left much to be desired, particularly a shaky start last time out that saw the Danes leading midway through the game, before Mike Sullivan’s club found their footing.
Sunday, against Germany — a stiffer test given the likes of Leon Draisaitl, Tim Stutzle, and Moritz Seider headlining the opposition — the Americans took a different approach, reigniting their physicality and turning the tilt into the type of chippy, physical affair Bill Guerin built his squad to win.
Naturally, it was the Tkachuks leading the charge, Matthew and Brady going full Bash Brothers mode to hold Germany’s elite stars at bay. The duo took a particular interest in Draisaitl, laying the body on the Edmonton Oilers phenom all night long, smothering him against the boards any chance they got. It seemed to work — the former Hart Trophy winner was held pointless on the night, with no shots to his name, as Germany’s offence sputtered against the star-studded American defence.
Stutzle broke through for his country’s lone goal, but only after the game seemed long out of reach, Team USA having stacked five goals by then. On the Americans’ side, captain Auston Matthews led the way with two goals and an assist, scoring twice while posted up at the netfront and setting up Zach Werenski with a slick cross-ice dish, too. Tage Thompson and Brock Faber earned Team USA’s other two goals on the night.
The three-point effort moves Matthews up to fifth in tournament scoring — his five points leaving him tied with Canada’s Nathan MacKinnon — while No. 34’s three goals have him tied for third overall.
With the 5-1 victory in tow, Team USA clinched the top spot in Group C and a bye to the quarterfinals. They’ll meet the winner of Sweden and Latvia, who meet on Tuesday in the qualification playoffs.
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The men’s hockey tournament at Milano Cortina 2026 runs from Feb. 11-22. Follow along with all the scores and standings.
Thrust into spotlight, netminder Franzreb gives Germany a chance
The scoreline suggests the Americans ran away with this one, and there’s no doubt they were the better side Sunday night. But give German netminder Maximilian Franzreb his flowers for the performance he turned in.
The 29-year-old served as the backup for Germany’s first two games, with NHL veteran Philipp Grubauer getting the starts against Denmark and Latvia. But with Germany meeting Team USA on the second night of a back-to-back, Franzreb was thrust into the starting role. And he delivered.
Though the Americans finished the night with five goals, it wasn’t until late in the game that they managed to truly break through. For much of the night, Franzreb did all he could to keep his club in it, to give them a chance. He held the Americans to just one goal through the opening frame, just a pair by the game’s midway point. And in the meantime, Franzreb — who’s spent his entire career in Germany’s DEL — came up with a slew of impressive saves, stymying the likes of Jake Guentzel, Jack Eichel and Dylan Larkin on grade-A chances.
It was in the second half of the game, as fatigue seemed to set in for the German squad in front of the netminder, that it all started to go sideways, the Americans beginning to pile up goals. Still, Franzreb finished the game with 32 saves on 37 shots, the veteran a key reason the Americans didn’t finish Sunday with the type of scoreline Canada pulled out against France.
Switzerland, Czechia show their mettle in back-and-forth OT thriller
After a difficult game on Friday that saw Switzerland lose one of their veteran leaders — Kevin Fiala enduring a tournament- and season-ending injury in the country’s loss to Canada — the Swiss managed to pick themselves up and finish their preliminary round on a high note.
Roman Josi’s side came out on the right side of a wild one against Czechia in the first game of the day, outlasting David Pastrnak and Co. en route to a 4-3 overtime win. But it was how it all went down, particularly in the final period, that made this one memorable.
The sides entered the third period with Switzerland leading 2-1, Josi and Timo Meier having scored a pair late in the second period. Six minutes into the final frame, Czechia’s Radim Simek scored to tie it up once again. A minute-and-a-half later, Pius Suter answered, scoring to restore Switzerland’s lead.
With three-and-a-half minutes left in the third, the Czechs seemed to score once more — but the goal was called off, Pastrnak ruled to have made contact with Switzerland netminder Leonardo Genoni.
The clock ticked on, Switzerland still leading. Then, in the final minutes of the frame, Czechia pulled out a wild sequence to keep the game alive. With the Czech net empty, a Martin Necas zone entry was nearly botched, a poke check sending the puck wobbling towards the blue line — Pastrnak picked it up, toe dragged around one Swiss forechecker, and got the puck to Filip Hronek. The defenceman carried it in and wired a no-look pass across the slot, finding Necas for a blistering one-timer. Two minutes left, game tied, yet again.
It was former Columbus Blue Jacket Dean Kukan who ultimately ended it, the defender walking in on a two-on-one in overtime and sniping his first of the tournament. With the hard-earned win, Switzerland sealed up second place in Group A, behind Canada, setting up a meeting with Italy in the qualification playoffs on Tuesday. Czechia, finishing third, will meet Denmark.
And based on their performance Sunday, both Switzerland and Czechia figure to be a tough out, the two star-studded sides making clear they won’t go down quietly.
Denmark’s quick start earns them first win of 2026 Olympic tournament
Speaking of Denmark, the Danes closed out their preliminary round with a tilt against Latvia on Sunday and managed to find their first victory of the tournament in the process.
It had been a rough ride for Denmark heading into this one, the side losing 3-1 to Germany in their first game and 6-3 to the Americans in their second. Then came a date with a Latvian squad fresh off a stunning upset of Draisaitl’s Germany.
But the Danes made clear early on Sunday that they wouldn’t be leaving the preliminary round without a win. It took just 23 seconds for them to open the scoring, Nick Olesen corralling a giveaway from a Latvian defender in the offensive zone, turning, and wiring one past Arturs Silovs. The goal tied the record for the third-fastest scored to start a game at the Olympics — the other holder of third place in those rankings? Draisaitl, who scored 23 seconds into a game against these very Danes, just three days ago.
Denmark weathered a push from Latvia and held on for their first win of the tournament. Olesen was crucial to the effort, adding an assist and a late empty-netter for a three-point night, while Nikolaj Ehlers scored what wound up as the game-winning goal. Netminder Frederik Andersen came up with 33 saves on 35 shots, including 14 in a pivotal third period as Latvia tried to pull level.
The win moved Denmark past Latvia into third place in Group C, setting up their meeting with Czechia on Tuesday — a game that’s certain to draw plenty of interest, as the winner of that tilt will meet Canada in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
