Picks for the 2026 Olympic men's hockey medal round bracket

"Martin Necas had a great comment after the Czechs won their qualification round game against Denmark: "We let them win the first one because we knew we were not going to win two in a row against Canada." Now that's the spirit! Necas has been awesome for Czechia. The Colorado Avalanche winger's seven points through four games ties him with Jaromir Jagr (seven in 2006) for the second most by a Czech player in a single Olympic tournament. He's one point behind Martin Straka (eight in 2006) for the record. The question is whether Necas, or any of his teammates, will generate a goal against Canada, because even one would be an improvement over their first meeting."

"Canada shut out Czechia 5-0 in the opening game of Group A. The Czechs played them tough for 19 minutes, 54 seconds before Macklin Celebrini scored on that perfect tip of a Cale Makar shot to break their will at the end of the first period. Eventually, it was all Canada, outshooting the Czechs 14-3 in the third period."

"It has been interesting to see how the Czechs have evolved since that loss. Coach Radim Rulik loaded up his top line with their three best scorers in the opening game: Necas, center Tomas Hertl ( Vegas Golden Knights) and winger David Pastrnak ( Boston Bruins). In their qualification-round win over Denmark, Rulik had each on their own line. Pastrnak's line with captain Roman Cervenka produced a goal"

Canada and the United States occupy opposite sides of the 2026 Olympic men's hockey bracket, so a Canada–U.S. matchup can occur only in the gold-medal game. The qualification round concluded and the path to the final looks considerably tougher for one of the North American powers. Czechia, led by Martin Necas, offers a scoring threat after Necas recorded seven points in four games, tying Jaromir Jagr for the second-most points by a Czech in a single Olympics. Canada previously beat Czechia 5-0, and Czech coach Radim Rulik adjusted lines ahead of a qualification win over Denmark. Coaching adjustments and line juggling will influence whether Czechia can score against Canada in the knockout stage.

Read at ESPN.com