Two teams with differing expectations meet in the first round of the knockout stage, as Lucas Raymond and Sweden take on Latvia in the men’s playoff qualifiers at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

After exciting preliminary contests, it's onto the playoff round for men's ice hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics. The playoff stage begins early Tuesday with four qualification matchups before the quarterfinals take place on Wednesday.

In a showdown between three members of the Canucks organization, it was Teddy Blueger and Anri Ravinskis who came out victorious with Latvia taking a 4–3 win against Germany. Latvia’s first win of the tournament came with a different goaltender in net, as former Canuck Artūrs Šilovs started for his team today.

When does the USA men's hockey team play next? Here's the Olympic quarterfinal schedule, including what day and time to watch.

Sweden's Olympic campaign in the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games is at a critical stage, with Victor Hedman emphasizing the importance of more physical play to prevent possible elimination at the hands of Latvia.

SportsLine's expert Mike Severance reveals his USA vs. Latvia picks for their Winter Olympics men's hockey matchup on Thursday

Victor Hedman thinks that Team Sweden needs to play more physically in order to win a very important Olympic quarterfinal against Team Latvia. Sweden's NHL-heavy roster is changing how they play to deal with Latvia's aggressive style as the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics get closer to elimination.

Sweden and Latvia face off in the qualifiers in this men's ice hockey playoff matchup during the 2026 Winter Olympics on Tuesday.

The United States and Latvia face off in this Group C men's ice hockey matchup during the 2026 Winter Olympics on Thursday.