The Team USA hockey team is getting things started in Milan with their first matchup of the Winter Olympics against Latvia. The first period was frustrating for the Americans, with two goals wiped off the board and only one by Brady Tkachuk. They ended the first period with a 1-1 tie between the two teams. However, after his initial goal was overturned, Nelson finally got things started in the second period.
Brock Nelson gave the Americans the lead, and this one finally counted, with the score getting to 2-1 thanks to him, following Brady Tkachuk's goal to open the game. The U.S. got in on the forecheck and made good things happen. Jack Hughes took possession of the puck behind the net, and when two Latvian players chased him, he slipped a pass to Nelson, who drove the net. The veteran put a nice move on Merzlikins and slid the puck into a wide-open goal.
It looked like Brock Nelson had tipped a puck past Merzlikins to give Team USA a 2-1 lead, but it was overturned due to goaltender interference on the part of J.T. Miller. The other goal for Team USA was wiped out by a coach's challenge on an offside call.
The Americans opened the Winter Olympics sloppily, and it was clear that, despite their talent, these players had never played a real game together and had not played an actual hockey game in over a week because the NHL break coincided with the Olympics.
From the jump in the second period, it felt like a completely different game for Team USA. They were controlling play from the point of attack and tilted the ice toward the Latvians. The U.S. defensemen have been quick to regroup and push the pace back toward the offensive zone whenever Latvia was clearing the puck.
The result has been Americans settling in and getting things done much more easily, given where they started. Tage Thompson and Brock Nelson again scored to increase the lead to 4-1, and then finally, Team USA captain Auston Matthews got in on the scoring and made the score 5-1 and counting.
