MILAN — The 2026 men’s Winter Olympic hockey tournament produced its first major upset in the opening game, as Slovakia—the defending bronze medalists—stunned the reigning 2022 Olympic champions, Finland, with a commanding 4–1 victory to launch the competition.
Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovský scored twice for Slovakia, while St. Louis Blues forward Dalibor Dvorský scored the game-winning goal, and Adam Ružička also tallied one for Slovakia.
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Minnesota Wild prospect Samuel Hlavaj was nothing short of spectacular in the Slovak crease, stopping 38 shots against the formidable Finnish attack.
Eeli Tolvanen scored the lone goal for Finland.
Slafkovský capitalized on a costly turnover by Mikko Lehtonen, corralled the puck, and methodically assessed his options before executing a deft deke around a fully outstretched Juuse Saros, tucking it into the gaping net. The goal gave Slovakia a 1–0 lead 12:15 into the opening period.
Up to that point, Finland had largely dictated possession, controlling the pace of play for much of the first half. Yet Hlavaj remained resolute, turning aside several high-quality scoring chances, including a pair of dangerous slot attempts from Colorado’s Artturi Lehkonen. One came off a blistering one-timer, but Hlavaj reacted with lightning reflexes, flashing his blocker at the last possible instant to steer the puck out of harms way.
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Later, Slovakia captain Tomáš Tatar was called for tripping Niko Mikkola, granting Finland its first power play of the contest. The Finns generated a handful of dangerous looks with the man advantage, highlighted by a Mikko Rantanen shot that sailed wide — prompting the former Avalanche star to slam his stick to the ice in visible frustration.
Finland began the second period shorthanded following a heated altercation at the horn to end the first. Joel Armia was assessed a roughing minor in the aftermath of the post-whistle scrum, giving Slovakia the early man advantage to open the middle frame.
Finland successfully killed off the Armia penalty and swiftly seized momentum when Matuš Sukeľ was called for holding Mikko Rantanen. This time, the Finns converted their power play opportunity.
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At 4:15 of the second period, Tolvanen evened the score at 1–1, detonating a thunderous one-timer from the slot off a precise feed from Armia. The shot beat the goaltender cleanly and ignited the Finnish bench. Artturi Lehkonen was credited with the secondary assist, helping orchestrate the equalizer.
Later in the period, with 10:49 remaining, Slafkovský threatened to restore Slovakia’s lead, but Saros remained vigilant, turning aside the attempt with a sharp pad save.
As the frame drew to a close, Lehkonen found himself with another prime scoring opportunity from the slot. However, he was unable to lift the puck over Hlavaj’s pad, and the Slovak netminder produced yet another remarkable stop, preserving the deadlock heading into intermission.
Despite being outshot 35–20, Slovakia regained the lead at 12:40 of the third period. Dvorský, a forward for the St. Louis Blues, seized on a defensive lapse, lifting a precise shot over Saros into the net.
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Dvorský had collected a pass in stride just as Sebastian Aho lost his footing and slid to the ice, creating a wide-open scoring lane. The Slovak forward did not hesitate, snapping the puck past Saros to register his first Olympic goal to give his team a 2–1 advantage in the pivotal final frame.
Slafkovský struck again with 9:30 remaining, scoring his second goal of the game and marking his ninth career Olympic goal in just eight games. Following a delay-of-game penalty on Miro Heiskanen for shooting the puck over the glass, Slovakia maintained pressure. Šimon Nemec intercepted a clearing attempt at the point, kept the play alive, and fed Slafkovský, who rifled some top-shelf cheese over Saros for an insurance marker, extending Slovakia’s lead to 3–1.
With roughly six minutes remaining, Rasmus Ristolainen delivered a hard check to Martin Pospíšil into the boards. Pospíšil remained on his knees momentarily before making his way back to the bench under his own power; no penalty was assessed.
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Finland pulled Saros for the extra attacker with under five minutes to play, hoping to mount a comeback. Ristolainen’s desperate diving attempt delayed an empty-net goal momentarily, but it ultimately proved futile. A scrum erupted in front of the net as Rantanen tried to cover the puck, but Ružička, a Dallas Stars forward, backhanded it into the cage, sealing a 4–1 victory for Slovakia and extinguishing any hope of a Finnish rally.
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