Day 3 of the Olympic men’s hockey tournament saw Groups A and B play their second games of the preliminary round. It was another wild day of action — especially in Group B, where the race to the quarterfinals is shaping up to be a tight one. Here’s how it unfolded.

The day began with an early-morning match-up between two historic rivals. Finland was coming off a tough opening-game loss to Slovakia, while Sweden had to work hard to defeat Italy.

Swedish goaltender Filip Gustavsson had a rough start to the tournament and was given an opportunity to bounce back. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Nikolas Matinpalo opened the scoring on Finland’s second shot of the game, and Anton Lundell added another before the period ended.

Sweden responded early in the second on the power play when Rasmus Dahlin cut the deficit to one. Soon after, Sweden earned another man advantage in search of the tying goal. Instead, Finland struck shorthanded. Joel Armia found a loose puck near the Swedish net after a clear and roofed it past Gustavsson to make it 3-1.

An empty-net goal in the third from Mikko Rantanen sealed the deal as Finland picked up its first win of the Games. Juuse Saros bounced back with a 34-save performance.

Slovakia entered the game riding momentum after upsetting Finland, while Italy turned heads by pushing Sweden in its opener.

After a scoreless first period, the goals came in the second. Slovakia opened the scoring on an early power play when Libor Hudacek’s cross-crease pass deflected off a defender and into the net.

Slovakia added another later in the period when Matus Sukel got a stick on a bouncing puck in front.

Italy responded on the power play before the intermission. A one-timer from Phil Pietroniro hit the crossbar and deflected to an open Matt Bradley, who buried the rebound to make it a one-goal game heading into the third.

Italy’s goaltending situation remains a concern. Davide Fadani started the game but was forced to leave with 10 minutes remaining, prompting Damian Clara’s return after he was injured in the opener. The timing was far from ideal, as Clara entered during a power play. He held the fort initially, but shortly after the penalty expired, Adam Ruzicka restored Slovakia’s two-goal lead.

Italy pushed late with the extra attacker, and Dustin Gazley cut the deficit to one. However, a late delay-of-game penalty wiped out the advantage and sealed Italy’s fate.

With the 3-2 victory, Slovakia remains the only unbeaten team in Group B, setting up a pretty interesting final day of group play.

Flames forward Martin Pospisil recorded one shot on net in just over 14 minutes of ice time. He continues to provide a physical presence while staying out of the penalty box — something that has occasionally been an issue for him in Calgary. Encouragingly, the high hit he took in the previous game didn’t appear to affect him.

Both teams were coming off opening-game losses, and Czechia likely expected a more straightforward outing. It started that way.

Martin Necas opened the scoring on the power play, and Michal Kempny added an even-strength marker to give Czechia a 2-0 lead after one.

The second period, however, turned chaotic. France came out flying and scored three times in the opening six minutes to take a stunning lead. Former Flame Dan Vladar, who had seen limited action to that point, suddenly found himself under siege.

Czechia responded with sustained offensive-zone pressure, and David Pastrnak squeezed a puck between the post and the goaltender to tie the game at three.

France had a late power play in hopes of reclaiming the lead but made a disastrous line change after a Czech clear. Czechia capitalized on a 3-on-0 shorthanded rush to regain the lead.

In the third, Czechia ensured there would be no comeback. Goals from Filip Chlapik and Roman Cervenka in the opening two minutes made it 6-3, which held as the final score.

Both teams entered the game with shutout wins in their openers and were looking to build on that momentum. Switzerland presented a legitimate challenge with several NHL players in its lineup.

Five minutes into the first period, Switzerland took a penalty — something you simply can’t afford against Canada. Nathan MacKinnon found Connor McDavid with a hard cross-ice pass, and McDavid wired a shot home to open the scoring.

Canada struck again minutes later. On the rush, Tom Wilson dropped the puck for McDavid, who found Thomas Harley streaking in. Harley beat the Swiss netminder five-hole to make it 2-0.

Switzerland responded on the power play when a shot from Sven Andrighetto deflected off Canadian goaltender Logan Thompson, popped up off the crossbar and landed for Pius Suter to bury.

Between periods, head coach John Cooper shuffled his lines, moving MacKinnon to the wing alongside McDavid and Macklin Celebrini. The trio found instant chemistry at five-on-five. Just over four minutes into the second, MacKinnon found Celebrini in the slot for his second goal of the tournament.

Sidney Crosby would add an insurance marker in the third to put the game out of reach.

A scary moment late saw Tom Wilson and Kevin Fiala fall awkwardly, with Fiala appearing to suffer a serious leg injury. He was stretchered off the ice. There was no malicious intent, but it was an unfortunate scene. The hockey world wishes him the best.

Canada improved to 2-0 and will look to remain perfect in group play against France on Sunday.

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