Sunday’s gold medal hockey game between American and Canadian rivals should stand in stark contrast to spirit of friendship and political neutrality prescribed in the Olympic Charter.
Aside from President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade war with Canada, not to mention his stated to desire to make the country America’s 51st state, Team USA’s Brady Tkachuk told ESPN ‘there’s hatred’ between the two teams.
‘For us, we want to be in that position, be the best,’ the Ottawa Senators star told ESPN. ‘So it’s going to be a game where I think a lot of guys could say, this is the biggest game that they’ve ever played in.’
Just days after the US beat Canada in the women’s hockey final, Team USA has a chance to win its first Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey since the 1980 Miracle On Ince.
Only instead of the USSR buzzsaw, which Team USA beat en route to Olympic gold in Lake Placid, this year’s squad is up against a similarly talented roster. Both Canada and America are represented by highly paid NHL stars with vast international and Stanley Cup experience.
In a few cases, rival Americans and Canadians are on the same NHL teams, such as Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk, Brady’s brother, and Team Canada’s Brad Marchand.
Officials separate United States’ Brady Tkachuk (7) and Slovakia’s Martin Pospisil (76) during the first period of Team USA’s semifinals win on Thursday in Milan, Italy
Connor McDavid and Nick Suzuki thank fans on their way off the ice after Thursday’s win
But as Brady told ESPN, Canada has been ‘top dog’ for too long, most recently winning the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off last season.
That event marked the first time in nearly a decade that hockey’s top international talent participated in a single tournament. And the North American rivals did not disappoint, getting in three fights in the opening nine seconds of their first meeting before Canada secured an epic overtime win over Team USA in the finals.
‘They play their game,’ Marchand said of the Tkachuk brothers after extensive trash talk over the tournament. ‘They do what they do. Sometimes when you shoot your mouth off in the media, it bites you. You can do that during the season, but when you’re playing best-on-best it’s different, and they got a little bit ahead of themselves.’
That defeat still resonates with Brady.
‘I mean, we were one shot away last year, and sometimes you got to go through that adversity, that sadness, those tough times for the good times to feel even better,’ Brady told ESPN. ‘It was definitely a tough couple days, couple weeks, months after that game. And I know I don’t want to feel like that ever again.’
J.T. Miller #10 of Team USA and Colton Parayko #55 of Team Canada fight during the first period in the 4 Nations Face-Off game at the Bell Centre on February 15, 2025
Brady Tkachuk #7 of Team USA and Sam Bennett #9 of Team Canada fight during the first period in the 4 Nations Face-Off game at the Bell Centre
The US has not beaten Canada in a gold medal game since the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, where New York Rangers goalie Mike Richter came away with tournament MVP honors for stifling a Canadian attack that included Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Eric Lindros.
This time, American netminder Connor Hellebuyck has a similar challenge in a Canadian power play that includes a Who’s Who of elite NHL scorers: Macklin Celebrini, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid and Mitch Marner.
Hellebuyck, a Winnipeg Jets star, has been stellar for Team USA, leading the 2026 Olympic in save percentage (.947) and goals-against average (1.23).
Asked about his confidence level after Team USA’s 6-2 semifinals win over Slovakia, Hellebuyck said it’s at an ‘all-time high.’
Hellebuyck will be up against St. Louis Blues netminder Jordan Binnington, who has been solid for Team Canada, posting a 1.65 GAA and .921 save percentage over three starts. Interestingly, Binnington has struggled in 32 NHL games this season, posting an unfortunate 3.65 GAA and a poor save percentage of just .864.
Team USA will have a chance to win gold Sunday, on what will be the 45th anniversary of the Miracle On Ice in Lake Placid, when a team of college players upset a vaunted Soviet team en route to a gold medal.
Jordan Binnington and Connor McDavid of celebrate their dramatic 3-2 win over Finland
The captain of the 1980 team, Mike Eruzione (pictured), recently shared a few words with this year’s squad, as revealed by US forward and Toronto Maple Leafs star, Auston Matthews
Auston Matthews and Connor Hellebuyck chat after Team USA’s 6-2 win over Slovakia
Team Canada legend Sidney Crosby is considered a game-time decision after hurting his leg
The captain of that team, Mike Eruzione, recently shared a few words with this year’s squad, as revealed by US forward and Toronto Maple Leafs star, Auston Matthews.
‘Just leave it all out there,’ Matthews told the Associated Press.
‘This is what you play for,’ Matthews said. ‘This is what you came here for: to have this opportunity and put ourselves in this position. We just got to go out there and leave it all on the ice.’
Team Canada is still waiting to learn if it will have captain Sidney Crosby, who suffered a lower-body injury earlier in the tournament and missed Friday’s win.
‘We have 48 hours to decide that,’ Team Canada coach Jon Cooper said. ‘But I will tell you he’s got a better chance of playing in the gold medal game than he had playing in tonight’s game.’
The Pittsburgh Penguins legend is a key player in the US-Canada rivalry. The last time the Americans reached the final came in 2010, when Crosby scored a golden goal off a face-off in the final, leaving Team USA with the silver medal.
Crosby is considered a game-time decision for Sunday. Face-off is scheduled for 8:10am EST on NBC.
