USA Hockey Captures First Gold Since 1980

After a 12-year absence, NHL players returned to the Olympic stage, bringing best-on-best international hockey back to the Winter Games for the first time since 2014. Canada won the gold medal that year. This time, the United States captured its first gold medal in 46 years, matching the anniversary of the “Miracle on Ice” victory over the Soviet Union. To gather different perspectives on the NHL’s Olympic return, two hockey fans shared their thoughts during the tournament’s quarterfinal stage, when eight teams remained.

Noah Clark predicted Slovakia would win gold, despite being an American rooting for the U.S. He selected the United States as the runner-up and named Finland as a potential dark horse. Finland later defeated Slovakia 6-1 to win bronze. Clark also predicted that Golden Knights right-wing Mitch Marner would have the strongest performance for the remainder of the tournament. Marner scored an overtime winner against Finland, but did not finish as one of the top performers statistically. “Their team is just good out of nowhere,” Clark said of Slovakia. “Honestly, they’re an underdog and can take it home.” When explaining his Finland prediction, Clark said, “They’re also an underdog. No one says anything about them, but they have a really good roster.”

Nathan Jerrald shared a similar enthusiasm about the NHL’s return. “I think it inspires not only me, but also other fans around the world to finally see their country and their players play again,” Jerrald said. Jerrald predicted Canada would win gold and selected Slovakia to take silver. He said Golden Knights center Jack Eichel would deliver the strongest individual performance, though Eichel did not finish among the tournament’s top point leaders. “I could see Canada winning the Olympics because they just have the dream team this year,” Jerrald said. Like Clark, Jerrald identified Finland as a dark horse contender.

In summary, the return of NHL players to the Olympic stage and the excitement surrounding international hockey have clearly grown among fans. While Clark and Jerrald offered different predictions and player expectations, both agreed that best-on-best competition brings renewed energy and pride to the sport. As the tournament continues, one thing remains certain: the NHL’s Olympic return has reignited global interest in hockey.