USA vs Germany: Men’s Olympic Hockey Preview and Predictions
Team USA will face its highest-ranked rival yet at the 2026 Winter Olympics when the United States Men’s National Hockey Team skates against Germany this Sunday. The two national squads…
Team USA will face its highest-ranked rival yet at the 2026 Winter Olympics when the United States Men's National Hockey Team skates against Germany this Sunday. The two national squads who'll face off at 2:10 p.m. EST carry hopes of seeding highly in the dozen-country field headed into elimination play.
Casual fans may be confused by the makeup of this USA-Germany matchup. For the first time ever in an Olympic setting, it's Germany that's boasting the biggest superstar. Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers and Team Germany opened Group C's scoring with a goal versus Denmark only 23 seconds into the first period on Thursday. Draisaitl stands fifth in the NHL with 80 points this season. It's Team USA that must utilize a team-first approach to defeat a squad led by Draisaitl and the Norris candidate Moritz Seider.
The United States and Germany debuted by winning handily in Milano-Cortina's first preliminary round, Team USA defeating Latvia 5-1 while Germany ended its encounter with Denmark taking a 3-1 win. Team USA and Team Germany played second games after press time versus Denmark and Latvia respectively. Whatever anyone thinks of their early form, each of Sunday's foes could do damage in the medal round.
USA vs Germany Injury Reports
United States
- Defenseman Seth Jones is out with an upper-body injury.
- Defenseman Charlie McAvoy is probable with a jaw injury.
Germany
- None
USA vs Germany Predictions and Picks
Italy's unique ice surfaces are a blessing and a curse for the all-NHL squads competing. The sheet's small offensive zones, combined with overall surfaces “3 feet shorter than in the NHL” as detailed by the Associated Press via ESPN, lends an edge to slower European pros by giving them less space to defend. At the same time, the rink's smaller dimensions can give Canada and Team USA the advantage by making the Olympics into a bang-and-crash affair, more like the NHL game than old-school Olympic ice hockey.
Germany will play into Team USA's strength by going all out on first-line combinations. Tim Stutzle and J.J. Peterka of the NHL have joined Draisaitl on head coach Harold Kreis' top combo, which puts pressure on ham-and-eggers such as Dominik Kahun of Switzerland's National League to produce without the benefit of skating with any of Germany's key playmakers very often. USA Hockey was lambasted for selecting checking specialists like Brock Nelson of Colorado, but the concept of HC Mike Sullivan going with a defense-first line against Draisaitl's main unit, then firing away with three scoring lines is attractive.
Team USA has plenty of speed. Sunday's tough game is a chance to show that they're big and physical also. Watch for the Americans to attack the boards and crash the crease to foil Germany's netminder Philipp Grubauer of the Seattle Kraken, outpacing Draisaitl's offense with at least five more goals.
