Hello from Milan and Cortina, the place the U.S. males’s hockey workforce beat Canada 2-1 in an overtime thriller to say gold, Team USA’s first within the occasion for the reason that 1980 “Miracle on Ice” workforce. Jack Hughes scored the game-winner whereas lacking a couple of tooth.
It was an electrical finish to the Milan Cortina Games, and our correspondents have all of it lined beneath and at NBC News. Missed the motion? Catch all of it streaming on Peacock.
Live from Milan Cortina
After 60-plus minutes of tense, back-and-forth hockey, the gold-medal recreation ended right away. Early in additional time, Team USA sprinted up ice with a person benefit, and Zach Werenski dropped a go to a trailing Jack Hughes, who drilled the puck into the web.
USA 2, Canada 1. The Americans had received gold, 46 years to the day after the “Miracle” workforce upset the Soviet Union in 1980.
“That’s just a ballsy, gutsy win,” Hughes mentioned afterward on the NBC telecast. “That’s American hockey right there.”
Team USA had struck first, scoring on its first shot of the sport. As Matt Boldy break up two defenders, he flipped the puck into the air, batted it up once more, after which buried it within the web. “Somehow [the puck] just stuck with me and got lucky on the goal,” Boldy mentioned.
Canada’s Cale Makar tied the sport on a laser within the second interval, and Canada stored attacking U.S. goalie Connor Hellebuyck. But he completed with 41 saves, which allowed Hughes to win the sport in additional time.
“Unbelievable game by Hellebuyck,” Hughes mentioned. “He was our best player tonight by a mile.”
Afterward, Hughes smiled large as he celebrated, exposing a bloody mouth that was lacking a couple of entrance tooth. He’d taken a excessive keep on with the face within the third interval, simply minutes earlier than the game-winner. His brother Quinn had additionally scored an additional time game-winner to beat Sweden within the quarterfinals.
During a workforce photograph, Team USA posed with the jersey of Johnny Gaudreau, an American participant who was hit by a automobile and killed whereas biking in 2024, and Gaudreau’s two younger youngsters.
“The USA hockey brotherhood is so strong,” Hughes mentioned. “I’m so proud to be American today.”
Athlete Spotlight
Earlier within the day, Eileen Gu received gold within the girls’s freeski halfpipe last, making her essentially the most adorned freestyle skier of all time. She has now received six medals in her profession (three gold, three silver), and remains to be solely 22 years previous.
At these Games, she had taken silver in slopestyle and massive air earlier than at this time’s halfpipe occasion.
“In all three events I showcased my best skiing, and as far as performance goes, that’s all I can ask for,” mentioned Gu, who was born and raised within the United States however competes for China.
“I’m the most decorated freeskier of all time, male or female,” she added. “That’s a testament to competitive strength. It’s mental strength. It’s being able to perform under pressure.”
Photo of the Day
Olympic Wrap-up
I imply, wow! What a two-week run that was, culminating at this time with a closing ceremony constructed across the theme “Beauty in Action.” The full spectrum of sports activities was on show at these Olympics, from sensible highs to devastating lows.
Alysa Liu received gold in girls’s determine skating, the primary gold for an American within the occasion in additional than twenty years. But Ilia Malinin, the preordained king of determine skating, completed eighth place within the males’s singles occasion, crumbling underneath the stress.
American speedskater Jordan Stolz received two golds and a silver right here, however missed his likelihood to have a really historic Games.
Mikaela Shiffrin lastly broke her droop and received gold. Meanwhile, Lindsey Vonn tried snowboarding on a torn ACL and ended up breaking her leg.
And Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, the Norwegian cross-country skier, received six gold medals right here, giving him 11 all time, essentially the most golds for anybody not named Michael Phelps.
We lined all of it for you in The Sports Desk e-newsletter. Now that the Games are finished, the e-newsletter will take a brief break. But it’ll be again quickly, masking all the most recent within the sports activities world — from March Madness, to MLB opening day, to the NFL draft and the NBA playoffs.
We’ll even be trying forward, prepping you for the world’s largest sporting occasion, the World Cup, coming this summer time. We’ll preview the gamers and groups to observe, give a glance inside how the host nations are making ready, and supply user-friendly guides.
The Sports Desk will proceed to ship good evaluation and authentic reporting, straight to your inbox, Monday by means of Friday. Stay tuned.