After finishing the round-robin stage with perfect records in the 2026 Winter Olympics, Team USA and Team Canada are now gearing up for the nail-biting knockout round of the competition.
Canada (Group A winner) has secured the number one seed, while the USA (Group C winner) is the No. 2 seed in the Winter Olympics after winning their respective groups. Thus, the two countries are enjoying a bye in the first round, as they learn their opponents in the quarterfinals stage.
No. 1 Canada will take on No. 8 Czechia—which defeated No. 9 Denmark in the first round of the elimination stage. Canada and Czechia already met before, as the Maple Leaf routed the Czechs by a score of 5-0 in the group stage. Meanwhile, the USA will face No. 7 Sweden, after the ‘Tre Kronor’ knocked No. 10 Latvia out of the tournament.
Because Canada and the USA are the top two seeds in the tournament, they can’t play each other until the gold medal game—or the bronze medal showdown, if both teams fall in the semifinals.
Auston Matthews #34 of Team USA
Full bracket
Along with Canada and the USA, Slovakia (Group B winner) and Finland (fourth-best seed) enjoyed some rest, too. No. 3 Slovakia—one of the biggest surprises of the tournament—will go up against No. 6 Germany, which defeated No. 11 France by a score of 5-1 in the first round.
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Meanwhile, No. 4 Finland will play No. 5 Switzerland. Unsurprisingly, the Swiss sent the Italian side home—which shouldn’t be too far from Milan—with a commanding 3–0 triumph.
Ahead of the semifinals, the matchups will be determined based on the seedings. Thus, Canada and USA will head their separate ways until the final (Feb. 22).
- CAN vs. CZE
- USA vs. Winner SWE/LAT
- SVK vs. GER
- FIN vs. SUI
Potential semifinals games for Canada and Team USA
If both North American sides move on to the semifinals stage of the 2026 Winter Olympics, they would face the two lowest remaining seeds. Thus, Canada could face any of the following scenarios in the semis:
- vs Sweden (if Team USA loses) OR
- Germany (if it defeats Slovakia and Team USA wins) OR
- Finland/Switzerland (if Slovakia and Team USA both win)
Meanwhile these are the potential semifinal matchups for Team USA:
- vs Slovakia (if Canada and Slovakia win) OR
- vs Finland/Switzerland (if Canada and Germany win in QF) OR
- vs Czechia (if Canada loses)
Tough matchup for Team USA
In more ways than one, Team USA got the short end of the stick. Obviously, to win gold one must go through any opponent put in the way, but the Americans may have preferred to face a different team than drawing Sweden in the quarterfinals.
On paper, Sweden was the toughest team among the eight sides that competed in the first round. Sweden hasn’t looked great so far, but after cruising to a 5-1 win over Latvia, it’s picking up momentum before taking on the USA.
After finishing round robin with 9 points, a 3-0-0 record, and a +11 goal differential, coming across Sweden in the quarterfinals feels like too little a reward for the Americans in Milano Cortina 2026. To be the best, one must beat the best, though. So make no mistake, Team USA will be up to the challenge.
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Which team has the easiest potential rivals in the QF?
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