The 'Miracle on Ice' gold medal win was 46 years ago for the U.S. men's hockey team and that's the last time the United States reigned supreme in Olympic men's hockey. Now, almost five decades later, the Americans believe it's finally their time once again.

Team USA begins Olympic competition, as well as the road to gold, against Latvia in a Group C matchup on Thursday.

“I’m not sure there’s been a deeper pool of American-born players and that speaks volumes for the growth of the sport in the United States,” U.S. head coach Mike Sullivan told NBC Sports in August 2025.

NHL players are back in the Olympics for the first time since 2014 and the U.S. roster is overflowing with generational talent.

Auston Matthews, Brady Tkachuk, Matthew Tkachuk, Jack Eichel, Quinn Hughes and Charlie McAvoy were the first six players named to the U.S. team last summer and Sullivan said he believes the squad can "put a stamp on the history of the sport." 

Each one of the initial squad members bring a unique and special role, which provide the foundation for this team to go far in the tournament. Captain Matthews will be relied on to find the back of the net in clutch moments, the gritty Tkachuck brothers will bring the in-your-face fire, Eichel will be tasked with taking his playmaking wizardry to the next level, and Hughes and McAvoy will lead the defense with unmatched skill and tenacity.

"He's an elite defenseman, and he's willing to do whatever it takes to win. I think that's why he endures what he endures. He's a physical player himself. But he takes hits to make plays a lot, and he does it undeterred," Sullivan said of McAvoy's toughness on Sunday.

The coach also said the band of brothers, featuring the Tkachuks and Quinn and Jack Hughes, creates an even more cohesive team environment in the locker room and on the ice.

"One of the things that we love about this group is there's a lot of familiarity. The brothers is next-level familiarity. So, I think any time you can add that element to your team it can only help," Sullivan added. 

While the U.S. hasn't named a starting goaltender among Connor Hellebuyck, Jake Oettinger and Jeremy Swayman for the Olympic opener, Hellebuyck had an impressive performance in last year's 4 Nations Face-Off loss. After Sunday's practice in Milan, Sullivan said the team had an idea of who may be in net but that they'd continue to evaluate.

“The reality is we have three excellent goalies. They're all very capable. Performance will inevitably be the dictator in a tournament like this," Sullivan said.

Latvia has seven NHL-ers, including Matthew Tkachuk's Florida Panthers teammates, Sandis Vilmanis and Uvis Balinskis. Tkachuk and Balinskis have won back-to-back Stanley Cups together with the Panthers, now they'll go head-to-head in the opening round of the Olympics.

The puck drops on Feb. 12 at 3:10 p.m. ET, watch live on NBCOlympics.com and Peacock.

Canada takes on Czechia in its first game of the Olympic tournament on Thursday, as they look to reclaim gold for the first time since the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

Sidney Crosby captained the 2014 Olympic championship team, and he'll take on that roll again at Milan Cortina by leading an all-star NHL squad.

"There is so much to love about it, so anytime you can put on that Canadian jersey, there is so much pride," Crosby said after training on Monday. 

He also discussed the squad's desire to play a "team game" in the tournament. "We have a ton of talent. We want to make sure that we check well; we do not want to give teams quality chances," Crosby said after practice on Wednesday. "We want to use our speed on both sides of the puck," he added.

Aside from Crosby, the talented roster is headlined by Connor McDavid who is finally getting his Olympic moment. The 29-year-old NHL superstar scored the game-winning overtime goal to give the Canada the win over the U.S. at the 2025 the 4 Nations Face-Off.

McDavid talked about how fun it's been practicing with his potential linemates, Macklin Celebrini and Tom Wilson in practice this week. "Obviously very different players, but great players in their own way. Obviously, Macklin (is a) great player, putting up lots of points and doing a lot of really good things in San Jose (with the Sharks NHL team), and obviously Wilson with his size and speed and physicality," McDavid said on Sunday.

When the Canadians meet Czechia, they'll go up against Boston Bruins star David Pastrnak. He scored the game winner in the country's 2024 IIHF World Championship title win. While, the Czechia roster has a total of 11 NHL players, they'll be the clear underdog when they go up against the powerhouse Canadian men.

Canada faces Czechia in Group A play on Feb. 12 at 10:40 a.m. ET, watch live on NBCOlympics.com and Peacock.

• Slovakia humbles reigning Olympic champ Finland 4-1
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• Sweden defeated Italy 5-2
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FULL TOURNAMENT PREVIEW

Reuters contributed to this article.