U.S. Men’s Olympic Hockey Team Advances After Overtime Thriller Against Sweden

The U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team is now just two wins away from a gold medal after edging Sweden in a dramatic 2 to 1 overtime victory in the quarterfinals.

Team USA, which has captured Olympic gold only twice and not since the Miracle on Ice run in 1980, survived a tense battle that remained scoreless through the first period. The breakthrough came in the second when Dylan Larkin found the net off assists from Quinn Hughes and Jack Hughes, while goaltender Connor Hellebuyck delivered a standout performance between the pipes.

With just 91 seconds remaining in regulation, Sweden’s Mika Zibanejad slipped one past Hellebuyck to tie the game and force overtime. The teams moved to 3 on 3 sudden death, with ten minutes to decide the outcome before a potential shootout.

About three and a half minutes into overtime, Quinn Hughes took a pass from Matt Boldy and fired home the game winner. The goal marked Hughes’ second point of the game and his sixth of the tournament, sealing a hard fought win for the Americans.

Quinn Hughes sends the USA Men’s Olympic Hockey Team to the semi-finals against Slovakia with this OT winner!!! #USAHockey pic.twitter.com/KkvvAYFejQ

— Grand Canyon State Sports (@GCStateSports) February 18, 2026

The U.S. Sweden matchup was one of three quarterfinal contests that required overtime. Canada narrowly defeated the Czech Republic, while Finland held off Switzerland in another tightly contested game.

Team USA will now face Slovakia in the semifinals after Slovakia secured a 6 to 2 victory over Germany. Canada is set to play Finland, the reigning Olympic gold medalist. A potential United States versus Canada gold medal showdown on Sunday would set the stage for one of the most anticipated rivalry games in recent Olympic history.

On the women’s side, the U.S. team, which last won Olympic gold in 2018, has dominated throughout the tournament and is preparing for another gold medal clash against Canada.