[Cecil Terwilliger]

https://twitter.com/user/status/2025000840885665998


‘Not gonna find a better hockey game’: What to know about Canada vs. USA

Could there be a more perfect tiebreaker? Or one more thickly coated in legacy and rivalry and patriotism?

“We’re not back home. We're in Italy playing,” begins all grown-up Tom Wilson, who grew up playing at North Toronto Memorial Arena.

“But it's not that long ago that you were the kid in the classroom when they wheeled those old big TVs in. You’d put the antennas up so you can get the signal and watch Team Canada play. I remember being there.

“And seeing your local rink with watch parties cheering you on, I mean, that's why we're here. We're here for our country. We're here to try and make them proud. It's not about us. If you ask any single guy in that room, it's way bigger than us. And all I can do, all we can do, at this point is just leave it all out there for our country.”

https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article...canada-vs-usa/

“It’s best on best, it’s what every American and Canadian grows up watching, grows up hearing about,” Matthew Tkachuk said. “This is the pinnacle of the sport. This is as good as it gets, a rivalry that’s as good as it gets. There will not be one TV without this game on in the United States and Canada. That should get you pretty fired up.”

The elder Tkachuk may not be exaggerating. No sooner had Canada punched their ticket for the final than Ontario premier Doug Ford announced all restaurants in the nation’s most populous province can serve alcohol beginning at 6am on Sunday ahead of the scheduled 8.10am ET start.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/20...milano-cortina


Brady Tkachuk admits to ‘hatred’ as US and Canada prepare for Olympic men’s ice hockey final

“There’s hatred there,” USA’s Brady Tkachuk told ESPN on Saturday. “I mean, they’ve been the top dog. They’ve been the best for the last bunch of years, and for us, we want to be in that position, be the best. So it’s going to be a game where I think a lot of guys could say, this is the biggest game that they’ve ever played in.”

The rivalry between the teams has sharpened recently, particularly as political tensions have risen between Canada and the United States. At last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, Canadian fans booed the US anthem and there were a number of on-ice fights.

Canada’s Connor McDavid acknowledged there is extra spice when his team play the US.

“It is the game everybody wanted and hoped for, and it will be a great game,” he said. “It now comes down to one game between two teams. It is a hockey game, and we are excited about that. Team Canada playing Team USA in a hockey game – that is what it is.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/20...inter-olympics


US vs. Canada for Olympic gold is a titanic showdown of hockey powerhouses

Canada and the U.S. entered the tournament as the favorites and played like it. Each team went undefeated, winning all five games, with the U.S. outscoring opponents 24-8 and outshooting them 201-124 and Canada 27-8 and 202-106.

“It’s two of probably the best teams ever, maybe,” U.S. winger Matthew Tkachuk said. “We’ve got a lot of respect for the players over there and what they’ve done in the past, and we want to be the team that comes out on top.”

https://www.tsn.ca/olympics/article/...y-powerhouses/

Canada vs U.S. – head-to-head

This will be the 20th time that the teams have met at the Winter Olympics.

Canada have won 12 of their previous encounters, with the U.S. winning only four. Team USA did, though, prevail 4-2 in their most recent Olympic match in the group stage at Beijing 2022.

In their five Olympic clashes when NHL players have participated, Canada boast a 4-1 win record over their rivals.

The last Olympic final featuring the sides was Vancouver 2010, when Canada won 3-2 in overtime thanks to Sidney Crosby’s golden goal.

The last time they met in any competition was the final of the 4 Nations Face-Off on 20 February 2025, when Team Canada beat the U.S. 3-2 in overtime, with McDavid scoring the winning goal.

https://www.olympics.com/en/milano-c...s-and-line-ups

https://twitter.com/user/status/2025261757350936804




Virtually every province, including Alberta, has announced that bars can open at 6 AM (or earlier) and serve alcohol.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...ohol-9.7099960

https://twitter.com/user/status/2025254376407712069