canada vs czechia hockey — Marner and Suzuki come up clutch as Canada survives in OT
Mitch Marner split two Czech defenders and slid a backhand past Lukas Dostal in three-on-three overtime to give Canada a 4-3 quarterfinal victory over Czechia on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. The win kept Canada's gold-medal march intact but came with late drama — including a captain forced out by injury and a goaltender’s game-saving stop in the final minute.
Overtime heroics and late rally
Marner’s finish completed a tense, one-game knockout that saw momentum swing repeatedly. Canada fell behind early on a Lukas Sedlak goal before Macklin Celebrini opened the scoring just over three minutes in. David Pastrnak and Ondrej Palat pushed Czechia back into the lead at different points, but Nathan MacKinnon converted a second-period power-play chance to level the score at 2-2.
Nick Suzuki — who had been active all night — tipped a point shot with 3: 22 remaining to knot the game at 3-3 and force sudden death. Marner’s overtime winner came moments later when he split two defenders and beat Dostal to end the contest and send Canada into the semifinals.
Big saves, injuries and individual milestones
Jordan Binnington supplied a massive stop late in regulation, robbing Martin Necas on a breakaway just ahead of the final minute and preserving the tie that allowed Suzuki and Marner to finish the job. The victory was tempered by the loss of captain Sidney Crosby, who was ruled out before the third period with a lower-body injury after an awkward hit and left the bench midway through the second.
Macklin Celebrini extended his tournament tear with another goal, now up to five goals. His seventh point of the tournament tied a longtime Olympic benchmark for teenage players in the NHL-era competition. Connor McDavid, meanwhile, assisted on Canada’s first two goals and now shares the single-Olympics points record for the NHL era with 11 points, matching performances from past Olympic stars.
What this means moving forward
The game was a tighter test than Canada’s 5-0 group-stage win over Czechia, reminding the favored squad that single-elimination hockey allows for surprises. Canada dominated much of the middle frame, outshooting Czechia 16-5 in the second period after a tightly contested opening 20 minutes, but the Czechs showed resilience in pulling ahead twice.
With the win, Canada advances to the semifinal round later in the Olympic schedule, but questions remain about the health of its captain and how that will affect line deployments moving forward. Goaltending depth also became a storyline; Binnington’s late save and composure in key moments underscored why netminding will be critical in the medal rounds.
For Czechia, the loss ends a brave tournament run highlighted by timely scoring and strong individual displays. The team battled through adversity and pushed the top seed to the brink, proving it can challenge elites on the Olympic stage.
Game summary (Feb. 18, 2026 ET): Canada 4 (Celebrini, MacKinnon, Suzuki, Marner OT) — Czechia 3 (Sedlak, Pastrnak, Palat). Final saves and goal times shaped a dramatic quarterfinal that now sets up a high-stakes semifinal for the Canadians.
