Olympic hockey schedule: when men’s and women’s tournaments start in Milano Cortina 2026

Olympic hockey is already a centerpiece of Milano Cortina 2026, with the women’s tournament opening first in Milan and the men’s tournament following a week later. Both events are split across two Milan arenas, and most puck drops land in convenient daytime windows for viewers in North America because Italy is six hours ahead of Eastern Time.

Women’s play begins Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, while men’s Olympic hockey starts Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. The gold medal games conclude the tournaments on Wednesday, Feb. 19 (women) and Sunday, Feb. 22 (men).

When does Olympic hockey start?

The short answer depends on which tournament you mean:

• Women’s Olympic hockey: starts Feb. 5 (preliminary round).

• Men’s Olympic hockey: starts Feb. 11 (preliminary round).

Both tournaments are staged in Milan, Italy, using Milano Santa Giulia and Milano Rho as the two ice hockey venues.

Men’s hockey Olympics: format and early dates

The men’s tournament runs Feb. 11–22 with 12 teams playing a three-game preliminary round in groups before moving into a single-elimination bracket. A key storyline this year is the return of top-level star power: this is the first Winter Olympics men’s tournament in more than a decade positioned to feature many of the world’s best players, which puts names like Sidney Crosby at the center of fan interest—though final rosters are set by national federations and are not the same as “automatic” NHL lineups.

The men’s first game on the schedule is Slovakia vs. Finland on Feb. 11 in Milano Santa Giulia.

Women’s Olympic hockey schedule: early action in Milan

The women’s tournament runs Feb. 5–19 with 10 teams split into groups, followed by a knockout round that leads to the medal games. The schedule starts quickly with multiple games per day, and the early slate includes heavyweight matchups in Group A plus a busy Group B that features the host nation.

The opening day (Feb. 5) includes Sweden vs. Germany and Italy vs. France, before the tournament builds toward later round-robin headliners and the playoff bracket.

Puck drop windows in Eastern Time

Because most listed start times are in local Italian time, the easiest rule of thumb is: subtract six hours to get ET.

Here’s a quick “planner” snapshot of notable early games and the typical start-time blocks you’ll see:

Those windows—roughly 6:10 a.m., 8:40 a.m., 10:40 a.m., and 3:10 p.m. ET—show up repeatedly across both tournaments.

Where to watch and how to follow results

Broadcast and streaming availability depends on where you are physically located, since Olympic media rights are sold country by country. In the U.S., Olympic hockey is carried across the main rights-holder’s TV networks and its companion streaming service, with live feeds plus full replays for most sessions. Outside the U.S., the simplest method is to use the official rights-holder in your country and rely on its daily schedule grid, which updates when start times shift.

For following “schedule and results” without spoilers, the most reliable approach is to use official event listings for each tournament day and select the specific sport view for ice hockey, which keeps your screen from jumping between unrelated events.

What to watch first

Women’s hockey gets the jump, so early momentum can matter: the preliminary round determines seeding, and the bracket can reward teams that avoid extra knockout games. On the men’s side, the schedule’s key pressure point is the three-game group stage—short enough that one bad night can change the quarterfinal path.

If you’re building a viewing plan, start with rivalry games (like Canada vs USA on the women’s side) and your national team’s group-stage slate, then fill in with quarterfinal day and the medal games.

Sources consulted: International Ice Hockey Federation; Olympics; National Hockey League; USA Hockey