The Winter Olympics are nearly here, with Milan and Cortino d’Ampezzo set to play host to the 2026 Games with events beginning on Feb. 5 and the Opening Ceremony on Feb. 6. Over 3,500 athletes from 93 different countries will compete for medals across 16 different disciplines, but one of the sports that will hold the attention of two icy North American powers—the United States and Canada—as well as the rest of the world is Olympic ice hockey.
Political tensions between the Americans and Canadians figure to make any contests involving the two gold medal favorites must-see TV. But the American and Canadian men and women will face stiff competition from Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic, among others, in the quest for gold.
Given that the Games are taking place overseas in Italy, TV viewers around the country will have to navigate time differences for the broadcasts of Olympic ice hockey.
So without further ado, let’s dive into the details about the Olympic ice hockey tournament at large, as well as the tourney’s schedule, TV times, and tips for streaming games.
Tournament Dates and Format Overview
Women’s Ice Hockey Format
The women’s tournament, unlike the men’s, will begin on Feb. 5 before the Games’s Opening Ceremony on Feb. 6, and conclude on Feb. 19. The 10 participating teams are divided into the following two groups of five teams each:
Group A: United States, Canada, Czechia (the Czech Republic), Finland, Switzerland
Group B: Sweden, Japan, Germany, Italy, France
Each team plays every other team in its group once in the preliminary round to determine seeding for the ensuing knockout rounds. All five teams from Group A will reach the quarterfinal, while only the top-three ranked teams from Group B will be quarterfinal-bound. From there, the tourney follows a single-elimination format, with the four winners of the quarterfinal round advancing to the semifinals, and the two winners from there advancing to the gold medal game.
Men’s Ice Hockey Format
The men’s ice hockey tournament begins on Feb. 11, five days after the Opening Ceremony. The 12 participating teams are divided into the following three groups of four teams each:
Group A: Canada, Czechia (the Czech Republic), Switzerland, France
Group B: Sweden, Finland, Slovakia, Italy
Group C: United States, Germany, Latvia, Denmark
Just like in the women’s tourney, each men’s team will play every other team in its group once in preliminary play to determine seeding.
The teams are then ranked 1st through 12th based on their performance in the preliminary round. The top four teams—three group winners and the highest-ranked remaining team—advance directly to the quarterfinal, while the remaining eight teams will match up against one another in a single-elimination style to determine who advances to the quarterfinal. Just like in the women’s tourney, play then follows a single-elimination style from the quarterfinals to the semifinals until the winner of the gold medal is determined.
How to Watch Olympic Ice Hockey
NBC has been the broadcast partner of the Winter Games since 2002, and in March of 2025 signed a media rights deal to continue to broadcast the Winter Games through the 2034 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. Joining NBC in Olympic ice hockey coverage is the USA Network, which will broadcast the American men’s and women’s opening group play games as well as a majority of the contests leading up to the medal rounds, and CNBC.
Peacock will be the streaming home for the Milan Cortina Games in the U.S. The streaming service will be home to every sport and event live, complete with several new interactive features.
Full Game Schedule and TV Times
Here's what the TV schedule looks like on the men's and women's sides. Some matchups have yet to be determined, and are listed as TBD. All times are EST.
Complete Women's Olympic Ice Hockey TV Schedule
| Game | Date | Time | Channel |
|---|---|---|---|
| USA vs. Czechia | Feb. 5 | 10:40 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Finland vs. Canada | Feb. 5 | 3:45 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| USA vs. Finland | Feb. 7 | 10:40 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Switzerland vs. Canada | Feb. 7 | 3:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Sweden vs. Italy | Feb. 7 | 9:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Czechia vs. Finland | Feb. 8 | 5:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| France vs. Sweden | Feb. 8 | 8:30 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Germany vs. France | Feb. 9 | 12:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Switzerland vs. USA | Feb. 9 | 2:40 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Canada vs. Czechia | Feb. 9 | 5:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Canada vs. USA | Feb. 10 | 2:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Women's Quarterfinal | Feb. 13 | 3:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Women's Quarterfinal | Feb. 13 | 8:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Women's Quarterfinal | Feb. 14 | 10:40 a.m. ET | CNBC |
| Women's Quarterfinal | Feb. 14 | 3:10 p.m. ET | CNBC |
| Women's Semifinal | Feb. 16 | 10:40 a.m. ET | NBC |
| Women's Semifinal | Feb. 16 | 4:15 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Women's Bronze Final | Feb. 19 | 12:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Women's Gold Final | Feb. 19 | 1:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
Complete Men's Olympic Ice Hockey TV Schedule
| Game | Date | Time | Channel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slovakia vs. Finland | Feb. 11 | 10:40 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Sweden vs. Italy | Feb. 11 | 3:25 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Czechia vs. Canada | Feb. 12 | 10:30 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Latvia vs. USA | Feb. 12 | 3:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Germany vs. Denmark | Feb. 12 | 8:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Finland vs. Sweden | Feb. 13 | 7:30 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Canada vs. Switzerland | Feb. 14 | 12:30 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Germany vs. Latvia | Feb. 14 | 6:00 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Finland vs. Italy | Feb. 14 | 10:40 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| USA vs. Denmark | Feb. 14 | 3:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Sweden vs. Slovakia | Feb. 14 | 8:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Switzerland vs. Czechia | Feb. 15 | 6:00 a.m. ET | CNBC |
| Canada vs. France | Feb. 15 | 10:40 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Denmark vs. Latvia | Feb. 15 | 1:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| USA vs. Germany | Feb. 15 | 3:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Qualification Playoff | Feb. 17 | 12:15 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Qualification Playoff | Feb. 17 | 3:10 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Qualification Playoff | Feb. 17 | 8:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Quarterfinal | Feb. 18 | 10:40 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Quarterfinal | Feb. 18 | 1:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Quarterfinal | Feb. 18 | 3:10 p.m. ET | Peacock |
| Men's Quarterfinal | Feb. 18 | 6:00 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Semifinal | Feb. 20 | 11:50 a.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Semifinal | Feb. 20 | 3:10 p.m. ET | Peacock |
| Men's Bronze Final | Feb. 21 | 2:40 p.m. ET | USA Network |
| Men's Gold Final | Feb. 22 | 8:10 a.m. ET | NBC |
Highlights, Delays and Replays
Given the time difference between Italy and the United States, there will be live broadcasts of nearly every game and then tape-delayed broadcasts of select games, mostly American and Canadian games, as well as some important quarterfinal and semifinal games on the men’s and women’s sides. All medal round games will have a live broadcast and tape-delayed broadcast.
But fear not if you miss a tape-delayed broadcast or there isn’t one for a game you would have liked to watch but were unable to! Peacock will also feature the ability to fully replay all events, including Olympic hockey, on-demand. And the streaming service will also be returning the ‘Browse By Sport’ feature, which will include an expanded search function tool that allows users to search for specific countries and even star athletes, a helpful addition given that NHL stars will be returning to the Olympics for the first time since 2014.
These tools will also be helpful to those in different time zones across the country as they navigate the time difference between the United States and Italy.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Olympic Hockey TV Schedule for 2026 Milan Cortina Games.
