International hockey is the best. It’s a warped speed blender of speed, skill, high IQ and passion on the biggest stage imaginable. Narratives galore. There’s something about it that demands my attention and I find myself planning my days around it. And clearly, it’s not just me:
As crazy as that headline is, it makes complete sense to me. I have no idea who this Slovak guy is or why he was on the run (or care to look into it), but I can understand the temptation of risking it all to experience this caliber of hockey.
As for my Americans, Team USA looked excellent in their first game against Latvia. There was a blip of uncertainty after Latvia got a greasy goal to tie the game at 1 from a puck bouncing around in front. But since that point, USA took complete control and ended up heavily outshooting Latvia 38-18. By the end of the 2nd period, you got the sense the Americans had pushed the Latvians to exhaustion with their forecheck and relentless pursuit of the puck. A couple silly penalties and undisciplined retaliations from Latvia made the frustration obvious.
Brock Nelson being (arguably) Team USA’s best player was certainly not on my bingo card. He always seems to be responsible defensively, I’m sure the coaching staff isn’t concerned with that side of the puck. The offense really sneaks up on you though. He had a goal called back due to a JT Miller goalie interference, hit the post later on, but then was rewarded with 2 goals. One of the goals, assisted by Jack Hughes, belongs in a museum with classical music on loop.
USA hockey runs in the Nelson blood, apparently – I was blown away learning this lore. Brock’s uncle, Dave Christian, was a member of the 1980 Miracle team that, of course, won gold at Lake Placid. His grandfather, Bill Christian, was a forward on the 1960 team that won gold at Squaw Valley. There are two other great uncles, one also on the 1960 team and the other on the 1956 team that won silver at Cortina d’Ampezzo. For Brock to not only continue the legacy in 2026 but contribute in a meaningful way right off the jump is beyond special. And not that it matters, but I love the fact he’s no longer a New York Islander. It makes him all the more enjoyable to bandwagon.
The commitment and emotional investment for Team Canada immediately stood out. Watching Connor McDavid celebrate a goal in the first period against Switzerland like it’s Game 6 of the Conference Finals is what the Olympics is all about. And then you have the unicorn that is 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini, scoring 2 goals in his first two international games. The second goal was on a lightning-fast release off a MacKinnon feed, watching live I could barely follow what even happened. The joy he plays with is infectious.
I have so much respect for the Canadians and canāt help but follow them closely, alongside my Americans.
And who needs coffee when you’re waking up on the east coast to Finland vs. Sweden? It’s probably about time we put this rivalry in the conversation with Duke/UNC, Red Sox/Yankees and the like, because the hatred is palpable and these games are visceral every time. I was skeptical at first of the no fighting rule during international play but it’s definitely the right call. This matchup, along with USA/Canada, would look more like a chaotic MMA card than ice hockey. It’s also kind of funny seeing these teams toe the line of ‘accidentally on purpose’ shoves, bumps, face washes in order to get under the skin of the opponent without dropping the gloves.
I’m usually partial to Sweden, given the Rangers’ storied love affair for Swedish players headlined by Henrik Lundqvist. I will say though, Finland played a very impressive game without their captain and who would be one of the best players in the tournament, Aleksander Barkov. Mike Johnson mentioned it on the TSN broadcast, but it feels like Sweden is more equipped to play with the lead than chase a game. They had plenty of power-play opportunities and looks at even strength but ultimately came up short. Credit to Juuse Saros for keeping the puck out of the net for the Finns. Ranger fans know Mika Zibanejad is seldom cross-checking someone already on the ice and screaming at the official. There’s something so primal when these guys wear the sweater of their country.
I was intrigued by the Germans, particularly the line of StĆ¼tzle, Draisaitl, Peterka. They’ve got sneaky top end talent between those three and Moritz Seider on the backend. There’s also Philip Grubauer between the pipes, who usually isn’t the biggest goaltending name but has been playing extremely steady for the Seattle Kraken this year. If any of the contenders overlook Germany, they could very well be caught off balance and take an L. Not to mention, they have the coolest jerseys in the tournament by a country mile, in my opinion.
Everyone’s already planning for USA vs. Canada in the gold medal game. It’ll probably come to fruition in all likelihood, and I’m not complaining one bit. Although there’s a part of me that feels Sweden, Finland, or Germany all have the pieces to crash the party. There’s still plenty of hockey between now and next Sunday.
In the meantime, I’ll be catching every game I can, binging media availabilities, and hunting for behind-the-scenes YouTube footage. What a time to be alive. And I sincerely hope that Slovak fugitive has found a way to watch from wherever he was whisked away to.
geryblogs 
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