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Team USA got off to a strong start in men’s ice hockey at the Milan Cortina 2026 Games, beating Latvia, 5-1, to open play Thursday night.
Although the team is loaded with young talent, it was the team’s oldest player, 34-year-old Brock Nelson of the Colorado Avalanche, who scored twice for the United States in the second period, to lead the team.
Nelson was patient with his first goal, which broke a 1-1 tie in the second period when New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes found him in front of the net. Nelson rounded Latvian goalkeeper Elvis Merzlikins to take a 2-1 lead.
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Brock Nelson of the United States celebrates his goal with teammates during a men’s preliminary group A match against Latvia at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 12, 2026, in Milan, Italy. (RvS.Media/Robert Hradil)
Then, with less than a minute to play in the second period, the United States found itself in prime position to open the doors when Hughes recovered the puck from Matthew Tkachuk.
With Hughes monitoring the ice, Nelson wasted no time with a one-timer on a nifty pass that found the back of the net for his second goal of the period.
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Earlier in the game, Nelson scored on a shot from Team USA’s blue line. But Latvia won its second challenge of the first half on goals after the referees determined that goalkeeper interference had affected the result.
Before Nelson’s goal was called back, Quinn Hughes had a goal disallowed after the Latvian bench was challenged for offside before the match. The challenge was correct and the score remained 1-1.
Brady Tkachuk of the United States celebrates his goal at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at the Milan Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 12, 2026, in Milan, Italy. (Andrea Branca/Eurasia Sport Images)
Brady Tkachuk, brother of Matthew, got things going earlier in the game, however, landing a nice wrist shot over Merzlikins’ glove at 5:29 of the game.
Things got interesting, however, when Renars Krastenbergs won a battle for the puck in front of the Team USA net just over a minute after Quinn Hughes’ goal was called back, hitting a backhander past Connor Hellebuyck for the score.
However, that was Latvia’s only goal and Hellebuyck faced only 18 shots compared to Team USA’s 38.
Tage Thompson and Auston Matthews were both power play scorers for Team USA, with the former coming in the second period to make it 3-1, while the latter nailed a point-blank shot of his own in the third to seal the victory.
Brock Nelson celebrates a goal with Matthew Tkachuk and Jack Hughes alongside him during a 5-1 victory over Latvia on February 12, 2026, at the Milan Cortina 2026 Games. (RvS.Media/Robert Hradil)
Team USA did what it was supposed to do against Latvia, and it should be heavily favored against the host Italian team on Saturday.
