One of the best sports movies ever made is Miracle, the David-and-Goliath story of the 1980 gold medal-winning U.S. men’s hockey team forever known as Team USA. The film captures how coach Herb Brooks, portrayed by Kurt Russell, took a group of individual amateur players and molded them into one of the most inspirational teams in American sports history.

One of the most memorable scenes comes when Brooks drills into his players that the name on the front of the jersey matters more than the one on the back, forcing them to skate brutal on-ice ladders after a poor performance until the arena lights are shut off. The cast of mostly unknown actors fit the identity of that team perfectly. You did not need to be a hockey fan in 1980 to feel the electricity of Lake Placid or understand the weight of the rivalry with the Soviet Union.

From that moment forward, USA Hockey was on the map. Investment followed. Development expanded. And over time, American hockey stopped borrowing talent and started producing it. Four decades later, the ripple effects are everywhere, from youth programs to juniors, college hockey, and the NHL. Nowhere is that evolution more obvious than on Olympic ice, especially on the women’s side, where the goal is no longer simply reaching the final. The expectation is winning it.

That shift from underdog to sustained excellence is the lens through which hockey fans are viewing the 2026 Winter Olympics, which run February 6 through February 22. The U.S. women, silver medalists in 2022, will open American hockey action in Milan against Canada on February 10, a rematch of the Beijing gold medal game that ended in a heartbreaking 3–2 loss. Since women’s hockey debuted at the Olympics in 1998, the U.S. has medaled in every tournament, winning gold in Nagano in 1998 and again in PyeongChang in 2018.

On the men’s side, NHL players return to Olympic competition after missing the 2018 and 2022 Games. Since the Miracle on Ice, the U.S. men have won silver medals in 2002 and 2010 and continue chasing another gold. Six players have already been named to the roster, including forwards Jack Eichel, Auston Matthews, and brothers Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Tkachuk, along with defensemen Quinn Hughes and Charlie McAvoy. The team will be coached by Mike Sullivan, with the remaining roster announced in early January. The men open play February 11 against Latvia.

The women’s roster will also be announced in early January, but if the recent Rivalry Series is any indication, expectations are sky-high. The U.S. outscored Canada 24-7 across four games to win the 2025 series. Still, no one inside the program is taking anything for granted. Preparation for Milan will treat that series as a footnote, not a predictor. The U.S. women will be led by head coach John Wroblewski, with a staff built for both development and pressure moments.

USA versus Canada remains the centerpiece of Olympic hockey. On the men’s side, Canada’s projected roster includes stars like Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Sidney Crosby, creating what could feel like an NHL All-Star game. Current DraftKings odds list Canada as the favorite at +140, with the U.S. close behind at +200. Sweden and Finland could keep things interesting, but this marks the first true NHL-powered Olympic tournament since 2014.

On the women’s side, the rivalry is even tighter. DraftKings lists the U.S. at -120 and Canada at -105, with the Czech Republic a distant challenger. The margins are razor thin, just as they have been for years. I have made my position clear. I am backing the red, white, and blue.

The Opening Ceremonies take place February 6, with celebrations split between Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. Milan will host festivities at the Arco della Pace, while Cortina will light its cauldron in Piazza Dibona, setting the stage for a Winter Games defined by tradition, rivalry, and a program that no longer hopes to belong, but expects to win.

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