Mitch Marner saved Canada’s men’s hockey team from an embarrassing exit at the 2026 Winter Olympics with an overtime goal during a 4-3 win against Czechia on Wednesday.
After a back-and-forth regulation that saw three lead changes and Canada goaltender Jordan Binnington denying Czechia forward Martin Nečas on a breakaway with 1:12 to play, Marner delivered the winner 82 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime, beating Lukáš Dostál with a backhand.
Canada now advances to Friday’s semifinal where it will face either Sweden — should it beat the U.S. on Wednesday — or the winner of Finland/Switzerland as the tournament re-seeds following the quarterfinals.
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The Czechs put a big scare into Canada and were on the verge of a massive upset. Ondřej Palát’s goal with 7:42 to play in the third period put the underdogs ahead 3-2, but minutes later Nick Suzuki saved Canada’s hopes with a deflected goal.
Canada loses Sidney Crosby to injury
Team Canada’s victory was not without one bit of worrying news. Sidney Crosby was ruled out of the game early in the third period after suffering a lower-body injury.
The 38-year-old, two-time Olympic gold medalist left in the second period after being hit along the boards by Nečas and Radko Gudas. It was a third big hit Crosby took in the period after Gudas and Palát connected on checks with the Team Canada captain.
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Crosby recovered and took a stride following the Gudas and Nečas hit, but he was seen shaking his right leg before exiting the ice. After being attended to on Canada’s bench, Crosby limped down the tunnel to the locker room. He did not return to the bench for the rest of the game.
Czechia was leading 2-1 at the time of Crosby’s injury.
According to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, Crosby will undergo an MRI on Wednesday to determine the severity of his lower-body injury.
Czechia coach has complaints about officiating
Radim Rulík has opinions on the officiating during the loss to Canada, and they were not kind.
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“The referees really worry me,” Rulik said, via translation. “What they’re allowing against us is unacceptable. After every game, we send them two or three clips where they confirm that the opponent should have been penalized. I don’t understand it.”
On Nečas’ breakaway attempt late in the game, Rulík felt like the Czech forward was hooked by Canada defenseman Devon Toews in the neutral zone. No call was made.
Rulík went on to say he was also not a fan of how the officiating pool is a mix NHL and European referees. He added that he didn’t understand why more calls weren’t made against Canada.
“I just don’t get it,” Rulík said. “I feel like everyone is afraid to call anything against Canada. We were basically playing against six players. I don’t want to make excuses, and no one has to agree with me, but the video backs me up.”
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What Rulík failed to bring up was a controversial missed call against the Czechs on Palát’s go-ahead goal in the third period.
Canada head coach Jon Cooper was asked about the missed call. His response way to just smile and walk away.
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