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Flashback Friday: Looking at Team Canada’s success in gold medal games with NHL’ers
2014 Olympics Team Canada
Photo credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
Ryley Delaney
Feb 20, 2026, 18:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 20, 2026, 18:02 EST
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Team Canada will play for gold on Sunday.
Down in the third period, both against Team Czechia in the quarterfinals and Team Finland in the semifinals, Team Canada scraped by with late game-tying goals and clutch game-winning goals to punch their ticket to the gold medal game. 
It’ll be the fourth time that Team Canada has played for the gold medal since National Hockey League players started going to the Olympics in 1998 (excluding the 2018 and 2022 Olympics). Every time that Team Canada has played for gold, they’ve won, while they failed to medal in the two Olympics that they failed to win gold.
The first time NHL players were allowed to play in the Olympics was in 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Team Canada fell in the shootout to Team Czechia, who went on to win the whole darn thing thanks to an incredible Dominik Hašek performance. They had a disappointing 2006 Olympics, the last time the Winter Olympics were in Italy. The less said about that performance, the better.
That leaves the three other tournaments that NHL’ers have been able to attend, 2002, 2010, and 2014. All three times, Team Canada was able to capture gold. In this edition of Flashback Friday, we’ll look at Team Canada’s campaign in all three of those Olympic tournaments.
2002 Team Canada Olympics Gold Medal
Members of the 2002 Olympic gold medal winning Team Canada pose for a photo. Credit: Canadian Olympic Committee

2002 Olympics

Held in Salt Lake City, Utah, the 2002 Olympics was the second time NHL’ers were allowed to play at the event held every four years. It had a different format than the 2026 Olympics, as there were preliminary rounds for the weaker teams. Of those weaker teams, only Germany and Belarus progressed to the first round, where Team Canada, Team Russia, Team Russia, Team Sweden, Team Czechia, and Team Finland were waiting.
Team Canada was in a group with Team Sweden, Team Czechia, and Team Germany, with their tournament opener against the Swedes. Things got off great, as Rob Blake scored just two and a half minutes into the game, with future Oiler Michael Peca getting an assist. However, the Swedes scored five unanswered, before then Oiler Eric Brewer scored to make it 5-2 with a little over four minutes left in the game.
They won their second game, but the Germans put up a fight. Joe Sakic scored early in the second period, Paul Kyria scored on the power play to make it 2-0 with just over six minutes left, then Adam Foote scored less than a minute later to give the Canadians a 3-0 lead heading into the third. Andreas Loth got the Germans on the board about eight minutes into the third, and then-Oiler Jochen Hecht scored with about four minutes left to make Team Canada sweat. Thankfully, they were able to hold on.
In Team Canada’s final game of the group stage, they finished in a tie with the reigning gold medal winners, Team Czechia. Mario Lemieux scored midway through the first, Martin Havlát tied the game late in the first, then scored again early in the second to give Team Czechia a 2-1 lead. Lemieux scored his second of the game late in the second, and the two teams exchanged goals in the third to tie the game at three.
With a 1-1-1 record, Team Canada finished third in the group, setting up a quarterfinal matchup against Team Finland. Three minutes into that game, Sakic scored for the 1-0 lead, then Steve Yzerman had a Yzerplan, giving Team Canada the eventual game-winning goal with just over four minutes left in the second. Team Finland scored on the following play, but were unable to solve Martin Brodeur.
On the same day as that game, Team Belarus shockingly knocked off Team Sweden thanks to a half-ice goal against then Oiler Tommy Salo. Team Canada made light work of Team Belarus, as Yzerman scored six minutes in, the Belarusians tied it, then Team Canada went off for six unanswered goals. Brewer scored his second of the tournament, and Ryan Smyth also picked up an assist. With Team USA beating Team Russia by a score of 3-2, that set up a gold medal game between the two North American teams.
With the Lucky Loonie at centre ice, Team Canada defeated Team USA on their home ice. Team USA opened the scoring, but Kayira and Jarome Iginla scored before the end of the first period. With five minutes left in the second, Team USA tied the game, but Sakic scored late in the second, and he and Iginla both scored their second of the game late in the third in the 5-2 victory.
2010 Olympics Team Canada Sidney Crosby
Feb 28, 2010; Vancouver, BC, CANADA; Canada forward Sidney Crosby (87) celebrates after he scored the game winning goal in overtime against the USA during the mens hockey gold medal match in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics at Canada Hockey Place. Mandatory Credit: Hangst/Witters via USA TODAY Sports

2010 Olympics

The 2002 Olympics were hosted in the United States, while the 2010 Olympics were held in Vancouver. These Olympics had the same format as the present day,  three groups, 12 teams, four of those teams earning a bye to the quarterfinals.
This time around, Team Canada was in a group with Team USA, Team Switzerland, and Team Norway. They kicked off their tournament with an 8-0 victory over Team Norway, as Iginla scored a hat trick, while Dany Heatley had two goals, and Mike Richards, Ryan Getzlaf, and Corey Perry all chipped in with a goal.
They just barely scraped by Team Switzerland in the second game. Heatley opened the scoring midway through the first period, and Patrick Marleau scored early in the second. But they took their foot off the gas, with Team Switzerland tying it late in the second period. After a scoreless third, Team Canada scored the lone goal in the shootout for the two points.
In the preliminary final against the States, Brian Rafalski opened the scoring in the opening minute of the game. Eric Staal tied it midway through the first, but Rafalski scored his second less than 30 seconds later. Heatley scored early in the second to bring Team Canada back to level terms, but Chris Drury and Jamie Langenbrunner each scored before the end of the second to give Team USA a 4-2 lead. Sidney Crosby scored with about three minutes left in the game, but the game was iced with an empty netter.
Because of the loss and shootout victory, Team Canada finished as the sixth-seeded team, meaning they’d need to play in the qualification playoff. A matchup against Team Germany was first up on the docket, as Team Canada stomped them 8-2. Iginla scored twice, with Joe Thornton, Shea Weber, Crosby, Richards, Scott Niedermayer, and Rick Nash all getting a goal.
That set up a quarterfinal matchup against the ever dangerous Team Russia. Scary, right? Nope, as Team Canada defeated them 7-3. In the first period alone, the Canadians out-scored Team Russia 4-1, as Getzlaf, Dan Boyle, Nash, and Brenden Morrow all found twine. Perry scored twice in the second period, with Weber adding his second of the tournament in the victory.
In the semifinals, Team Canada faced off against Team Slovakia, who always seems to do well at the Olympics. That was the case in 2010 as well, as the Canadians jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Marleau, Morrow, and Getzlaf. However, the third period saw the Slovaks fight back, as Ľubomír Višňovský scored midway through the third and Michal Handzuš scored with five minutes left in the game. Ultimately, Team Canada held on to set up a matchup against Team USA.
On February 28th, 2010, Jonathan Toews opened the scoring with a little over seven minutes left in the first. Perry added another goal midway through the second period to give the Canadians a 2-0 lead. But it was never going to be easy, as Team USA cut the lead in half with about seven minutes left in the second, and Zach Parise scored the game-tying goal with 25 seconds left in the game. That just set up the Golden Goal, as Crosby received a pass from Iginla, going five-hole on Ryan Miller to give Canada the gold medal on home ice.
Team Canada Gold 2014
Feb 23, 2014; Sochi, RUSSIA; Canada goalie Carey Price (31) celebrates winning the gold medal Canada defenseman Dan Hamhuis (5)as Team Sweden skates by in the foreground in the men’s ice hockey gold medal game during the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Bolshoy Ice Dome. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

2014 Olympics

Up until these Olympics, the last time NHL players participated at the winter games was back in 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Like in 2010, Team Canada kicked off their tournament against Team Norway, as they were in a group with Team Finland, Team Austria, and the Norwegians.
It wasn’t an 8-0 blowout like four years prior, but Team Canada defeated Team Norway 3-1. Weber opened the scoring just over six minutes into the middle frame, Jamie Benn made it 2-0 with just under five minutes left in the second period. Team Norway cut the lead in half 22 seconds into the third, but Drew Doughty gave the Canadians an insurance goal less than two minutes later.
The Norwegians avoided being blown out, but the Austrians did not. Doughty scored the game-winner just five minutes, then Weber added a second midway through the first. Jeff Carter scored a natural hat trick in the second period, and Getzlaf scored a shorthanded goal with about three minutes left in the second in what was a 6-0 victory.
Those were expected wins, but the group came down to the final game, a matchup against Team Finland. Doughty scored his third of the tournament with about six minutes left in the first, but Tuomo Ruutu tied the game with two minutes left in the second. After a scoreless third, Doughty won the game in overtime to help Team Canada win the group.  Because of this performance, Doughty is on the 2026 Olympic roster.
With eight points, the Canadians finished as the third seed, behind Team Sweden and Team USA, but ahead of Team Finland, who earned the other bye to the semifinals. Their quarterfinal matchup was against Team Latvia, after they defeated the Swiss in the qualification playoff. Much like the last two World Juniors, 
Team Canada was goalie, only defeating Team Latvia 2-1. Patrick Sharp opened the scoring, Lauris Dārziņš tied the game late in the first, and Weber scored with seven minutes left in the game. Latvian netminder Kristers Gudļevskis stopped 55 of 57 shots in the near upset.
The semifinals weren’t any easier for Team Canada, as their gold medal hopes hinged on defeating Team USA, the team they had beat in the 2002 and 2010 Olympics for gold. Early in the second period, Jamie Benn scored the game-winner, as the Canadians shut out the Americans for a trip to the gold medal against Team Sweden.
Again, Team Canada didn’t allow a goal. Toews scored with seven minutes left in the first, Crosby gave them a 2-0 lead in the second period, and Chris Kunitz scored to ice the game midway through the third. Overall, Team Canada allowed just three goals in the tournament, one to Team Norway, one to Team Finland, and one to Team Latvia.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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