Day 5 of the Olympic men’s hockey tournament marked the final day of the round robin. Teams from Groups A and C played their last games to finalize both the group and overall standings. Only a few spots guarantee a direct path to the quarterfinals, while the remaining teams will have to battle through the qualification round. Here’s how the final round-robin games unfolded.

🇨🇭 Switzerland vs. 🇨🇿 Czechia

This was a battle for second place in Group A — and a battle it was.

Czechia scored the lone goal of the first period when Filip Chlapik beat Swiss goaltender Leonardo Genoni on a two-on-one to make it 1-0. It was Genoni’s first goal allowed of the tournament after becoming the oldest goaltender to record an Olympic shutout.

Switzerland took control in the second. Captain Roman Josi tied the game on a puck that deflected off a Czech defender and into the net. Late in the period, the Swiss grabbed the lead on the power play when Timo Meier cashed in on a rebound in front.

Czechia found the equalizer in the third as Radim Simek buried a rebound of his own. Switzerland answered less than two minutes later when Pius Suter knocked in a loose puck on a broken play in front of the net to restore the lead.

With time winding down, Czechia thought it had tied the game on a power play, but the goal was waved off after David Pastrnak clipped Genoni on the shot.

After the penalty expired, Czechia pulled its goaltender. The extra attacker paid off when Filip Hronek set up Martin Necas for a one-timer to tie the game late and force overtime.

Just under two minutes into overtime, Switzerland found itself on a two-on-one. Dean Kukan elected to shoot and beat the goaltender bar-down to win the game 4-3.

The win secures second place in Group A — and a favourable match-up in the qualification play-off — for Switzerland.

🇨🇦 Canada vs. 🇫🇷 France

Canada was looking to secure top spot in Group A while also hoping to claim first overall in the standings. Goal differential would likely play a role in staying ahead of the United States, so generating offence was a priority.

In the first period, Tom Wilson opened the scoring. He used his size and strength to regain the puck behind the net before getting it to the point, where Drew Doughty fired a shot on goal. Wilson was right there to bury the rebound.

France answered back just 13 seconds later. After a poor play in his own zone by Colton Parayko, France’s Justin Addamo fired a shot on Jordan Binnington, who gave up a rebound that went right to Floran Douay for the goal.

Canada responded quickly, needing only 39 seconds to retake the lead. The Canadians found themselves on a three-on-one, and Sidney Crosby found a trailing Devon Toews, who wired one past the French netminder.

Canada took a penalty late in the period, but France’s power-play struggles continued. Mark Stone broke in shorthanded and scored to make it 3-1 heading into the first intermission.

Canada generated plenty of chances in the second period but struggled to find the back of the net for much of the frame. Cale Makar finally broke through on the power play past the midway point of the period, and the floodgates began to open.

Macklin Celebrini was awarded a penalty shot late in the period. Under Olympic rules, any player can take the attempt, but head coach Jon Cooper showed confidence in the young forward. Celebrini made no mistake, scoring to make it 5-1.

Just 29 seconds later, Crosby added one of his own on a play that saw the puck deflect and slide into the net, making it 6-1 after two periods.

Crosby’s point moved him atop the all-time list for Olympic points by a Canadian with 15, surpassing Flames legend Jerome Iginla, who had held the record for 16 years.

Canada added four more goals in the third period to bring its total to 10. Connor McDavid, Bo Horvat and Brandon Hagel all scored, while Celebrini added his second of the game to continue his excellent tournament. Celebrini now holds the all-time record for goals and points in an Olympic tournament featuring NHL players.

There was also some rough stuff late in the game. Despite fighting being prohibited at the Olympics, Wilson dropped the gloves to complete what may be the first Gordie Howe hat trick in Olympic play. The fight resulted in an automatic ejection but is not expected to lead to supplementary discipline.

The performance should be enough to secure first overall in the tournament, though Canada would still need to wait and see if the Americans had another miracle in their back pocket.

🇩🇰 Denmark vs. 🇱🇻 Latvia

With second place still up for grabs in Group C, Latvia could secure the spot with a win.

Instead, Denmark stormed out of the gate with three first-period goals from Nick Olesen, Mikkel Aagaard and Nikolaj Ehlers.

Latvia responded late in the frame when Roberts Kristaps scored on a delayed penalty to cut the deficit to two.

Eduards Tralmaks brought Latvia within one in the second period, but Denmark held firm behind NHL veteran Frederik Andersen, who made 33 saves on 35 shots.

An empty-net goal sealed a 4-2 victory for Denmark.

That result created a three-way tie for second in Group C. Germany would need to force the United States to overtime to secure the spot — otherwise, another tiebreaker scenario loomed.

🇺🇸 United States vs. 🇩🇪 Germany

With Canada’s win over France earlier in the day, the United States needed a 10-goal victory to claim top spot overall. Germany would be no pushover.

It was a competitive first period between the two teams. Shots favoured the Americans 15-8, with German goaltender Maximilian Franzreb getting the start over NHL netminder Philipp Grubauer.

The opening goal wasn’t scored until there were just nine seconds left in the period. The Americans controlled play for the final couple of minutes, and Zach Werenski wired a shot home to give them the lead.

The United States went to the power play early in the second, and Auston Matthews cashed in on a rebound to make it 2-0. With three minutes to play in the frame, Brock Faber scored an unusual goal to extend the lead to three. The initial shot was sailing high over the net, but Franzreb reached to catch it and got just enough of it to redirect the puck under the bar and into the net.

The Americans entered the third period needing seven goals to overtake Canada in the overall standings. They started quickly, scoring two more unanswered goals. Tage Thompson recorded his second of the tournament, while Matthews added his second of the game. That would be the final American scoring of the night.

Tim Stützle added a goal for Germany, but Connor Hellebuyck was solid, making 23 saves in a 5-1 American victory.

The loss wasn’t too bad for Germany though. Stuztle’s goal helped solve the group C tiebreakers and Germany would end up taking second place in their group.

Canada secured top spot overall, while the United States won Group C.

Qualification Playoff — Feb. 17

🇨🇿 Czechia vs. 🇩🇰 Denmark (Winner plays 🇨🇦 Canada)
🇸🇪 Sweden vs. 🇱🇻 Latvia (Winner plays 🇺🇸 United States)
🇩🇪 Germany vs. 🇫🇷 France (Winner plays 🇸🇰 Slovakia)
🇨🇭 Switzerland vs. 🇮🇹 Italy (Winner plays 🇫🇮 Finland)

PRESENTED BY DAILY FACEOFF’S OLYMPIC COVERAGE

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