The Canadian men’s hockey team is set to kick off their Olympic Games campaign against Czech Republic, while the women’s team will face Finland first. The hockey schedules for the Winter Games in Milan-Cortina, Italy were recently announced by the International Ice Hockey Federation.
The defending gold medalist, Canada’s women, will start their journey on February 5 against Finland. On the other hand, the Canadian men will hit the ice on February 12 versus the Czech Republic, marking the return of NHL players to the Olympic Games after their last appearance in 2014.
Additional matchups for Canada include facing Switzerland on February 13 and wrapping up group play against France on February 15 in the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. The Canadian women’s team will clash with Switzerland on February 7, meet the Czech Republic on February 9, and end Group A battles against the arch-rival U.S. on February 10 at the Santagiulia Arena.
In previous Olympics, Canada secured the gold medal by defeating the United States 3-2 in Beijing 2022. The women’s quarterfinals are scheduled for February 13-14, followed by the semifinals on February 16 and the medal games on February 19. For the men’s tournament, the playoff qualification round is set for February 17, with the quarterfinals on February 18, semifinals on February 20, bronze-medal game on February 21, and the gold-medal game on February 22.
Due to the time zone difference, Canadian fans can catch the games on television in the late morning or early afternoon Eastern Time. The IIHF released the schedules shortly after the first six players for each participating country’s 25-man rosters were announced.
Excitement is building as Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Brayden Point, and Sam Reinhart are among the initial six players named to represent Canada at the upcoming Milan-Cortina Olympics in 2026.