Olympic Hockey Medal Round Drama
The men's Olympic hockey tournament has reached its medal round featuring breakout stars and surprise upsets in one of the most unpredictable competitions in recent memory. NHL fans are also buzzing over recent thriller games including Pittsburgh falling 4-5 to New York in OT and Boston losing 4-5 to Florida in a shootout.
- Slovakia, led by Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky, has been a major surprise, winning its group and earning a bye to the quarterfinals after upsetting Finland 4-1. Slafkovsky, who was the 2022 Olympic MVP as a teenager, scored two of his six tournament points in that opening-game victory. - The quarterfinal matchups are now set for February 18, featuring the United States vs. Sweden, Canada vs. Czechia, Slovakia vs. Germany, and Finland vs. Switzerland. - Germany advanced to the quarterfinals with a 5-1 victory over France, led by NHL stars Leon Draisaitl and Tim Stutzle. Draisaitl had a goal and two assists in the decisive game. - In the qualification round, Switzerland shut out host Italy 3-0, with all three goals coming on the power play. Despite the loss, Italian goalie and Anaheim Ducks prospect Damian Clara made an impressive 48 saves. - This tournament is the first in 12 years to feature NHL players, raising the level of competition and star power significantly. - In the 5-4 Bruins-Panthers thriller, former Boston captain Brad Marchand scored the game-winning goal in the shootout for Florida. The loss snapped a seven-game point streak for the Bruins, while the Panthers ended a four-game losing streak.
