MILAN — The United States is 40 minutes away from playing for the gold medal in men’s hockey at the Olympics.
Dylan Larkin and Tage Thompson scored in the first period of the semifinal against Slovakia to give the U.S. a 2-0 lead. Thompson is one of just a handful of newcomers on the team who did not play at the NHL-run 4 Nations Face-Off a year ago.
Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck has stopped all eight shots he faced so far including on a couple of power plays made possible by U.S. penalties.
The U.S. last reached the final in 2010 when it lost to Canada in overtime on Sidney Crosby’s famous golden goal. Canada also awaits this time after rallying to beat Finland in the other semifinal when Nathan MacKinnon scored with 35.2 seconds left.