Matthew Tkachuk has won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Florida Panthers, but he still has another lifelong dream to accomplish. Tkachuk will be tasked with leading Team USA in the 2026 Olympics as the country hunts its first gold medal since 1980.
Last season, Tkachuk and the Americans came close to dethroning Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Team USA won the round robin matchup but lost the championship game in overtime when Connor McDavid found the back of the net for the Canadians.
In an interview with ESPN, Tkachuk said he doesn’t view the Olympics as an opportunity for “revenge.” He sees it as the chance to achieve something that USA Hockey has been building toward for quite some time now. Canada just happens to be in the way.
“I don’t even know if you look at it as revenge, but it’s been a long time coming since USA Hockey’s been at the top of the mountain,” Tkachuk said. “Canada’s owned the Olympics or World Cups or even the world championships, although we got that back a little bit this year. They’ve been the leader in all of that and the team that we’ve all been trying to knock off.”
Tkachuk’s father, Keith, was a member of the 2002 USA Hockey team that fell just short of a gold medal in Salt Lake City. That team, like several others, came up short against Canada in the final.
“We’ve had some incredible players and national teams that we’ve looked up to our whole lives but that haven’t gotten the job done,” Tkachuk said. “So, not only would winning [gold] accomplish dreams for us, but hopefully it would bring a lot of satisfaction for those guys that paved the way for us.”
Close calls and a disturbing trend
American hockey fans are all too familiar with heartbreak this century. In 2002, the Americans ran through most of the tournament only to be outclassed by Canada in the gold medal game.
In 2010, Team USA defeated Canada in round robin play, and that set up one of the greatest Olympic hockey games ever. In the gold medal game, Zach Parise tied the game for the Americans with just seconds left in regulation, only for Sidney Crosby to score his now iconic “Golden Goal” in overtime.
Then, of course, there was the 4 Nations Face-Off. Team USA had its best roster, perhaps ever, and it still couldn’t get over the red-and-white hump.
The 2026 Olympic team should be just as loaded, if not more so, than the 4 Nations roster. It will be the Americans’ best shot at a gold medal since they won it in 1980, but in order to do that, they’ll have to buck a concerning trend.
Team USA has performed quite poorly at the Olympics outside of North American soil. The last time they medaled overseas at the Olympics was in 1972, when they won silver in Sapporo.
The 2026 Olympics will take place in Italy, meaning the Americans will have to shake off whatever has been ailing them away from North America if they are going to bring gold home for the first time in 46 years.
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