No miracles here in Italy. Just an immensely satisfying moment in the history of American sports.
Can the U.S. actually feel united for a moment?
On a day when the Democratic governor of New York allowed counties not under a weather emergency to open bars at 6 a.m. on a Sunday in order to serve thirsty hockey fans rooting for what is very likely the favorite Olympic squad of President Donald Trump and his supporters, the United States men’s hockey team ended a 46-year gold medal drought, defeating Canada 2-1 in a tense overtime thriller at the 2026 Olympic final in Milan.
Read more: Nearly 50 Years After the ‘Miracle on Ice,’ Team USA Is Striving for Olympic History
The victory ended Team USA’s 2026 Olympic effort on the highest of notes: its 12 gold medals are a new all-time high for a Winter Games, breaking the former mark, 10, set on home soil at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. This is also the first time the United States men’s team has won hockey gold on foreign soil.
Less than two minutes into sudden death overtime—Olympic rules call for three skaters vs. three skaters, instead of the usual five on five—Jack Hughes delivered the golden goal. He fired a left-wing rocket past Canadian keeper Jordan Binnington to seal the victory.
A jubilant Hughes threw his helmet somewhere in the air. It might not have come back down yet.
Matt Boldy had started the scoring for the U.S, six minutes into the game, to give the Americans a 1-0 advantage. In the second period, Canada turned up the pressure on U.S. keeper Connor Hellebuyck, who seemed invincible: Hellebuyck even stuffed a breakaway chance for Canadian superstar Connor McDavid, the Edmonton Oilers forward who is a three-time NHL MVP. But during a period in which the Canadians outshot the Americans 19-8, they were bound to break through. Cale Makar scored the equalizer from the right wing late in the second.
So the stage was set for the game’s finish in Milan, chants of “U…S…A” and “Can-a-daaa” bouncing off one another at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. Though Canada has a richer hockey history and defeated the Americans in the last two Olympic gold medal games in which they squared off—in 2002 in Salt Lake City, and in 2010, in Vancouver—the U.S. had the stronger all-around tournament. The Americans, for example, romped over Slovakia, 5-0 in Friday’s semifinal, while Canada needed a comeback effort against Finland to even reach the final.
Canada outshot the United States in the game, 42-28. Hellebuyck was simply sterling.
Going into the final, players from both teams talked about how this was the North American rivalry matchup they all wanted. For the Americans, the Olympic win serves as a measure of revenge: the final of last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off, an NHL midseason event that became a bit of a phenomenon, McDavid’s overtime score gave Canada a thrilling win. The Americans were just one shot away from victory, and they knew it.
Now, McDavid was stuffed. In the first best-on-best Olympic tournament since 2014, Team USA hockey reigns supreme. We’re a hockey nation, for the foreseeable future.
