NHL
Jordan Ramsay
February 11, 2026

2026 Milan Men’s Olympic Hockey: Slovakia stuns Finland in tournament-opener

It didn’t take long for the first upset in the 2026 Milan Olympic men’s hockey tournament.

Slovakia stunned Finland, cruising to a 4-1 win in the tournament’s opening game on Wednesday, a result that could stir up the final standings in Group B.

Here’s what you need to know.

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Slovakia stuns Finland

Finland was a heavy -500 favourite against Slovakia, but Montreal Canadiens star Juraj Slafkovsky stole the show with two goals and an assist. This is Slafkovsky’s second Olympics after leading the tournament in scoring as a 17-year-old in 2022 Beijing.

Samuel Hlavaj was also outstanding in net for Slovakia. The Iowa Heat goalie (Minnesota Wild AHL team) made 39 saves as Slovakia moves to the top of Group B, with Sweden and Italy set to play later on Wednesday.

The loss for Finland is particularly damaging as they now lose the tiebreaker against Slovakia and goal-differential could also come into play. That makes Finland’s games against Sweden and Italy must-wins if they want a shot at winning Group B to automatically qualify for the quarterfinals.

On the flip side, the win is obviously huge for Slovakia. Italy isn’t expected to be much of a threat to Slovakia and the win against Finland should give the Slovaks a lot of confidence when they face Sweden.