The United States' sled hockey team outlasted a physical, back-and-forth game against rival Canada, beating its northern neighbor to gold for the third Paralympics in a row to become the first hockey team — Olympic or Paralympic — to claim five straight Paralympic titles.

With the 6-2 win, the United States also became the first country to sweep all three Olympic and Paralympic hockey tournaments at one Games.

Defenseman Jack Wallace contributed three goals and an assist, his first hat trick of the 2026 Games. Rookie Kayden Beasley added the fourth, and four-time Paralympians Declan Farmer and Brody Roybal scored the country's final two tallies.

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Four years ago, China fielded its first-ever Paralympic team and took bronze on home ice. The country battled its way to 3rd place once again in Milan, outlasting a gritty Czech team in the bronze medal final to secure another prize.

The two countries have grown very familiar with each other since the 2022 Beijing Games. They've gone head-to-head for bronze at each of the last three world championships, with Czechia squeezing out one-goal wins each time, including a 2-1 overtime victory at the most recent edition of the tournament.

Czechia proved resilient and determined throughout its entire tenure in Milan. Though the country eventually fell in its matchups against Canada and the United States, it refused to go down without a fight, breaking Canada's two-game shutout streak and handing the United States its smallest margin of victory through four games.

That dogged spirit remained in the bronze medal contest. The Czechs came out fast and furious, launching a physical offensive attack and finding the back of the net twice in the first two-and-a-half minutes. Pavel Kubes recorded his first goal of the tournament, and Radek Zelinka potted his fourth. 

After some regrouping, China responded with two of their own tallies, scored by Tian Jintao and Wang Zhidong two minutes apart, but two back-to-back penalties to end the period killed the country's momentum.

The score remained locked at 2-2 through the middle 15 minutes of play, but just 18 seconds into the final period, Tian found the back of the net for the lead. Czechia remained strong through the finish but was unable to find an equalizer. 

Czech goalie Patrik Sedlacek was the star of the game — and possibly the best goalie of the whole tournament — effortlessly sliding post-to-post and robbing China of several seemingly-undeniable scoring chances. Through five games in Milan, Sedlacek stopped 87 of 103 shots on net (0.844 save percentage).

During its four previous Paralympic appearances, Czechia never had advanced beyond the preliminary round. The country placed 5th in 2010 and 2014, then 6th in 2018 and 2022.