Canada advances to the gold medal match after a comeback against Finland in a close Olympic semifinal.

MILAN — “Heart Canadians”

Canada’s Sidney Crosby wasn’t in the spotlight on Friday, and frankly, the anticipated gold medal match felt absent. In these latest Olympic games, the heavy favorites, Canada, fell behind in the final period once again.

Just days after they leveled the score against the Czech Republic with under four minutes to go, triumphing in overtime, Canada found themselves in a two-goal hole. Yet, they managed to claw back, thanks to Nathan MacKinnon’s power-play strike with just 35.2 seconds remaining, sealing a 3-2 victory and a spot in Sunday’s gold medal match.

In a dramatic game at La Scala, Canada struggled for the first 40 minutes.

After Sam Reinhart’s power-play goal cut Finland’s lead to 2-1 midway through the second period, it seemed like they might hold onto their advantage.

Traditionally strong defensively, the Finnish team controlled much of the game, denying Canada access to the center of the ice and forcing them to take desperate shots from the edges, limiting their opportunities.

However, what transpired in the third period was rough for them. Missing some critical moments on the ice is, well, understandable under the pressure.

So, it wasn’t surprising that at 10:34, Shea Theodore unleashed a one-timer that snuck past Juuse Saros, leveling the game and prompting a celebratory embrace among teammates clad in vibrant red.

Even with the score tied, Canada maintained the pressure, although MacKinnon was penalized for high-sticking Niko Mikkola with 2:35 on the clock.

As the clock wound down, McKinnon received a pass from Connor McDavid and executed a one-timer from the left circle, erupting Santa Julia Arena as Canada took the lead with just 35.2 seconds left in regulation.

Finland argued that there was an offside entry into the zone, but a review revealed that Macklin Celebrini was indeed onside, though just barely.

2026 Winter Olympics

Once again, Canada found themselves in a tight spot, this time from the beginning of the second period.

Sam Bennett was penalized for goaltender interference, inadvertently setting up Mikkola’s shot on Saros, which Finland capitalized on with Mikko Rantanen’s one-timer right after the faceoff.

Finland secured another special teams goal shortly into the second period as Erik Haula scored on a breakaway.

Despite having an impressive lineup, with players like Tom Wilson throwing hits and the reformed Mach 3 line of MacKinnon, Celebrini, and Connor McDavid, Canada struggled to find solutions.

Finland, gold medal winners in 2022 without NHL players, aimed to crash the anticipated USA-Canada showdown that everyone had envisioned for last year’s gold match.