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02/11 12:21 CST Juraj Slafkovsky scores twice as Slovakia upsets Finland 4-1 to
open the Milan Cortina Olympics
Juraj Slafkovsky scores twice as Slovakia upsets Finland 4-1 to open the Milan
Cortina Olympics
By STEPHEN WHYNO
AP Hockey Writer
MILAN (AP) --- Juraj Slafkovsky scored twice to pick up where he left off four
years ago, fellow NHL player Dalibor Dvorsky got the tiebreaking goal with less
than 13 minutes left and Slovakia pulled off an upset in the first men's hockey
game of the Milan Cortina Olympics, beating Finland 4-1 on Wednesday.
Slafkovsky, who was MVP at the 2022 Beijing Games and now plays for the
Montreal Canadiens, scored the first goal of this tournament less than eight
minutes in, skating through Finland's defense and sliding the puck past a
helpless Juuse Saros. After Dvorsky scored in the third period to put Slovakia
ahead, Slafkovsky wired a shot past Saros on the power play and pumped his fist
to the crowd.
Slafkovsky also scored the first two goals of the opener in Beijing against
Finland, though that came in a 6-2 loss. He finished with seven goals while
helping Slovakia win bronze, the country's first medal of any color in hockey
at the Olympics.
He and his teammates got off to a surprisingly better start in Milan after it
looked on paper like they were overmatched. Slovakia dressed seven NHL players,
while all but one on Finland's roster plays in the league.
Goaltender Samuel Hlavaj had a lot to do with the initial underdog story on the
ice, fending off one onslaught after another. Finland outshot Slovakia 18-5 in
the first period and 39-25 overall, and the Minnesota Wild prospect finished
with 38 saves.
Unable to watch while the U.S. team he runs was practicing next door, Wild
general manager Bill Guerin said "it's great" that Hlavaj got off to such a
strong start at the Olympics.
It was not so good for Saros, the Nashville Predators starter who allowed three
goals on 24 shots in defeat. Finland next plays archrival Sweden on Friday, and
it's possible Vancouver's Kevin Lankinen gets the nod, just as he did in
replacing Saros in net at the 4 Nations Face-Off a year ago.
Eeli Tolvanen, also a returning Olympian after playing in 2018, scored
Finland's only goal. Adam Ruzicka scored into an empty net to seal it for
Slovakia.
Sweden faces host Italy in the nightcap of Day 1.
___
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
