Team Canada opened its 2026 Winter Olympics men's hockey campaign with a resounding 5-0 win over Team Czechia on Thursday at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. The standout moment came from 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini, who not only scored Canada's first goal of the tournament but also became the youngest Canadian NHL player to score at the Olympics.
The opening goal was a textbook display of timing and skill. With just 5.7 seconds left in the first period, Connor McDavid recovered the puck in the offensive zone and set up defenseman Cale Makar for a slapshot. Celebrini, skating onto the back door, tipped Makar's shot past Czech goaltender Lukas Dostal, breaking through after nearly 20 minutes of scoreless play. Before Celebrini, Jonathan Toews held the distinction as the youngest Canadian NHLer to score at the Olympics, having done so at 21 during the 2010 Vancouver Games.
Celebrini entered the tournament already ranked fourth in NHL scoring, with 81 points (28 goals, 53 assists) in 55 games, trailing only McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Nikita Kucherov. His performance in the opener drew praise from veteran teammates, including MacKinnon, who was making his Olympic debut alongside Celebrini. He declared the young winger to be one of the best players in the world.
“Regardless of his age, (Celebrini is) a top five or seven player in the world. No questions,” said MacKinnon.
Goaltender Jordan Binnington backstopped Team Canada's victory with a flawless 26-save performance, making pivotal first-period stops on Michal Kempny and David Kampf. Meanwhile, McDavid recorded three assists, connecting on plays with Nick Suzuki and Tom Wilson, and helping execute a power-play goal with MacKinnon that recreated a similar sequence from last year's 4 Nations Face-Off. Mitch Marner and Bo Horvat also contributed, combining for two additional goals.
On Canada's top line with McDavid and Tom Wilson, Celebrini continues to prove his talent while drawing valuable insight from hockey heavyweights Sidney Crosby and MacKinnon. Having previously trained with them in summer sessions and played alongside them at the 2025 IIHF World Championships, Celebrini demonstrated that nerves have little effect on his gameplay.
