No team can afford to give their goalie a long leash at a brief tournament like the Olympics, so Saros has precious little landing strip to turn his game around. If he or another Finnish netminder can't play like a brick wall, then the skaters will have to put on an offensive clinic to compete for a medal.

Predators stars Filip Forsberg and Juuse Saros face early Olympic struggles: Forsberg demoted, Saros takes a loss.

In Olympic history, Canada has won nine gold medals in the men's hockey tournament, and they're expected to contend for it at Milan Cortina alongside the United States. The rival North American countries last met in the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off final and Canada defeated the U.S. in overtime.

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MILAN (AP) — The puck has dropped on men’s hockey at the Milan Cortina Olympics. Finland and Slovakia played Wednesday the first of 30 games in the tournament that will conclude with the gold medal final on Feb.

Finland falters against Slovakia as Granlund showcases vision. Clara battles valiantly for Italy before an unfortunate injury.