Olympics
Marner the OT Hero: Scores as Team Canada Beats Czechia 4-3 in Olympic Quarterfinal
Mitch Marner became the OT hero for Team Canada, scoring the winner against Czechia and securing a semifinal spot in the Olympics.
In a heart-pounding quarterfinal at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, Mitch Marner delivered the biggest goal of his international career—sniping the overtime winner to send Team Canada to the semifinals with a dramatic 4-3 victory over Czechia on Wednesday.
Connor McDavid noted that it’s tough to beat a team twice in a row, and Czechia gave the Canadians all they could handle.
Canada trailed 3-2 late before a furious comeback, with Nick Suzuki tying it up to force OT. Then, at 8:38 of the extra frame, Marner buried it following a big stop by Jordan Binnington to keep the game tied.
This game was a lot closer than most expected. Head coach Jon Cooper was going to McDavid, MacKinnon, and Celebrini often, hoping the depth would step up. It was that depth that won it. First Suzuki, then Marner.
Suzuki was pegged by many analysts going into the game as the most likely logical healthy scratch. Because he was a center playing at wing, he wasn’t in his best position. But when Crosby went down, Suzuki was back in the middle, and it made a huge difference.
Elliotte Friedman called it the greatest hockey game he had ever watched and admitted that when Czechia scored to take the lead, he thought Team Canada was going to lose. Already having lost Sidney Crosby in the game, it didn’t look promising. Kevin Bieksa called it the most stressful game ever, noting that Team Canada is top-heavy.
After the prelims and now this knockout game, Team Canada will advance to the semifinals. They will take on the USA or Sweden.
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