Team Canada kept its foot on the gas at the 2026 Winter Olympics, cruising to a commanding 5-1 win over Switzerland in their second preliminary round matchup on Friday. With the victory, Canada improves to 2-0 in Milano Cortina and locks up the top spot in Group A heading into the final game of round-robin play.
There were a few tweaks to the lineup, but the result was the same: dominance. Brad Marchand was unavailable for this one, opening the door for Seth Jarvis to step in. On the blue line, Josh Morrissey sat out with an injury, and in net, Jordan Binnington-fresh off a shutout against Czechia-gave way to Logan Thompson, who got the nod and delivered a solid performance between the pipes.
Canada’s star power was on full display again, and the big names showed up in a big way. Nathan MacKinnon led the charge with a goal and two assists, Connor McDavid matched that line with one of his own, and Sidney Crosby added a goal of his own.
Macklin Celebrini, the 18-year-old phenom, continued to impress with a goal and an assist, while Cale Makar quietly picked up two helpers from the back end. Thompson turned aside 24 shots to earn the win in his Olympic debut.
The scoring started early and in classic Canadian fashion-on the power play. Just under six minutes into the first period, MacKinnon zipped a cross-ice feed to McDavid, who wasted no time snapping it past Swiss goalie Akira Schmid. It was the kind of quick-strike execution that’s become a trademark of this Canadian squad.
A few minutes later, McDavid was at it again, this time finding Thomas Harley in the high slot. Harley let it fly through traffic, beating Schmid clean for his third point of the tournament and giving Canada a 2-0 lead.
Switzerland did manage to answer before the first intermission. On a power play of their own, Pius Suter found space and beat Thompson to cut the lead to 2-1. It was a brief momentum shift, but Canada wasted little time regaining control.
Early in the second period, MacKinnon and Celebrini connected on a beautiful one-timer that restored the two-goal cushion. MacKinnon set the table, and Celebrini didn’t miss-his second goal of the tournament and another reminder of just how dangerous this kid already is on the international stage.
In the third, it was Crosby’s turn to get on the board. The veteran captain parked himself in front, got a stick on a slick feed from Mitch Marner, and tipped it home to make it 4-1. It was vintage Crosby-positioning, timing, and execution.
MacKinnon put the finishing touches on the win midway through the third. After a relentless forecheck by Celebrini forced a turnover, McDavid drove the net and created chaos in front. The puck bounced loose, and MacKinnon was right there to bury it, sealing the 5-1 final.
This win marks Canada’s 12th straight Olympic victory in tournaments featuring NHL players-a streak that speaks to the depth, talent, and cohesion this program continues to bring to the world stage. With Group A already wrapped up, Canada will close out the preliminary round against France on Sunday, already looking ahead to the knockout rounds with confidence and momentum firmly on their side.