{"id":458788,"date":"2026-02-15T14:33:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T14:33:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/458788\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T14:33:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T14:33:13","slug":"usas-top-seed-chances-take-a-hit-despite-best-efforts-of-ottawa-senators-brady-tkachuk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/458788\/","title":{"rendered":"USA\u2019s top-seed chances take a hit despite best efforts of Ottawa Senators\u2019 Brady Tkachuk"},"content":{"rendered":"

MILAN \u2013 The United States trailed Denmark 2-1 after the first period on Saturday night and Brady Tkachuk was feeling frustrated.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t happy with my own game and thought it needed to be a lot better,\u201d the Ottawa Senators captain said. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say the team needed a boost, it\u2019s just [I needed] to get myself going and get myself to be a lot better than I was, because it wasn\u2019t very good.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the dressing room, coach Mike Sullivan called for a more simplified, north-south approach. Tkachuk, who seemed to have the same energy as usual in the opening period despite his self-critique, simply amplified the style that makes him so effective in the NHL. The 6-foot-4, 224-pound winger started throwing his weight around even more. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the pucks are bouncing and [I\u2019m] not great with the puck, I feel like a part of my game is just being physical and making an impact that way,\u201d Tkachuk said. \u201cI thought that could maybe spark the other side of things. It\u2019s just doing whatever it takes to help the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tkachuk scored in the second period to tie things up and celebrated emphatically. The goal sparked a 6-3 win, which allowed the United States to improve to 2-0-0-0 at the Olympics with one game left in the preliminary round. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a beast,\u201d Sullivan told reporters in the mixed zone. \u201cHis energy is contagious. He\u2019s so vocal on the bench, in between periods. He\u2019s a positive guy. He drags everybody into the fight, literally and figuratively, and that\u2019s what we love about him.\u201d<\/p>\n

GOAL: Brady Tkachuk, the only guy who came to play today. 2-2.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) February 14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Brady Tkachuk is playing the straightforward, no nonsense game that should be the U.S.’s bread and butter. But not everybody in red, white and blue is playing that style right now.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) February 14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

The Americans entered Saturday\u2019s game as the heavy favourite against a Danish side short on NHL talent. But Team USA surprisingly found itself playing from behind after a neutral-zone shot by Nicholas Jensen somehow eluded Jeremy Swayman. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a flash screen and I truly lost it in the stands,\u201d the Boston Bruins goalie explained. \u201cIt\u2019s dark stands and a dark puck. One I really want back, but at this level you just have to park it and move forward and take it one shot at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘One I really want back’: Swayman allows long-range goal after losing puck in stands Following the United States’ 6-3 win over Denmark on Saturday, Team USA goalie Jeremy Swayman discusses the resilience by his team to fight back and get a win, and what he saw on the long-range goal he allowed. <\/p>\n

The Danes defended stubbornly to maintain their advantage until the midpoint of the middle frame when Tkachuk finally broke through with a goal off a faceoff win by Jack Eichel. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe stuck with it,\u201d Tkachuk said. \u201cNot everything is going to be exactly how you draw it up, picture perfect, and I thought we handled adversity really well. It just speaks to the character and just the trust and belief we have in one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey come out, they play hard, their goalie is playing hard,\u201d said New Jersey Devils forward Jack Hughes, who scored the final goal of the night. \u201cWe have one of the deepest teams here and if we just stick to our game we\u2019re going to roll teams over. But these teams are good teams. Like, maybe people at home just expect big scores, but all these guys are good players and they play hard and they can skate well so it\u2019s hard hockey out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

The U.S. eventually wore down the Danes, but their chances at beating out Canada for the top seed in the playoff round took a significant hit. The North American rivals both have two regulation wins in two games and if they continue to stay perfect the No. 1 seed will come down to goal differential. Canada is plus-nine ahead of Sunday\u2019s game against France. The U.S. is plus-seven ahead of their preliminary-round finale against Germany on Sunday night.<\/p>\n

Whoever finishes as the No. 2 seed will likely be lined up to face fellow favourite Sweden in the quarterfinals. Despite winning two of three games, the Swedes finished third in their group behind Slovakia and Finland due to a goal-differential tiebreaker. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe No. 1 seed would be nice, but whoever we play in the quarters it\u2019s going to be a good team,\u201d Hughes said. \u201cWe just want to keep finding our game and I think it\u2019s less about the seeding and more about how we\u2019re playing and how we\u2019re feeling about our game. If it happens great, if it doesn\u2019t we\u2019ll keep moving on.\u201d <\/p>\n

Assuming no major upsets (never a safe assumption in international hockey), the 2nd seed overall is likely on a path to meet Sweden in the quarters. So the battle between \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 and \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 for the top seed gets a little more intriguing. Would come down to goal differential.
\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 +9 after\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2014 James Duthie (@tsnjamesduthie) February 14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

The three group winners and the best second-place team advance directly to the quarterfinals, which will be played on Wednesday. The other eight teams in the tournament will play in a qualification round on Tuesday with the four winners moving on. <\/p>\n

Regardless of seeding, the Americans are anticipating significant crowd support moving forward. Chants of \u201cUSA! USA!\u201d have echoed around Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena during both their games. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s sick,\u201d Hughes said of the atmosphere. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of USA fans there. I\u2019m sure a lot of people are coming over. I know part of our crew is starting to come over now. I\u2019m sure the USA fans will start to take over a little bit more.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘I’m sure USA fans will start to take over more’: Devils’ Hughes loving Olympic atmosphere Jack Hughes discusses what it’s like to play in the atmosphere at Milano Cortina 2026 alongside his brother Quinn Hughes, and what it means to score in the Olympics. <\/p>\n