Five things to watch at the Milan Cortina Games on Saturday, Feb. 14

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This article was published 13/02/2026 (229 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MILAN – From the first elimination game for the Canadian women’s hockey team to a speedskating superstar looking to bounce back from a narrow but disappointing result off the podium earlier this week, here are five things to look out for at the Milan Cortina Olympics on Saturday, Feb. 14:

DO-OR-DIE FOR GOLD BEGINS

The women’s hockey team will look to advance in its first elimination matchup at the Olympic tournament Saturday when it takes on Germany. The Canadians are the defending gold medallists but had an up-and-down preliminary round with a 5-0 loss to the United States sandwiched between 5-1 and 5-0 wins over Czechia and Finland. Captain Marie-Philip Poulin practiced Friday for the first time since being injured against Czechia on Monday, but her status remains uncertain.

REBOUND TO THE PODIUM?

Speedskating star William Dandjinou of Sherbrooke, Que., will look to add to his medal haul at the Games when he takes to the rink in men’s 1,500-metre short-track speedskating. Dandjinou won silver as part of Canada’s medal relay team, but was pushed off the podium in the men’s 1,000, leading until the final lap when competitors from the Netherlands, China and South Korea slipped past him during the surge to the finish line. Dandjinou enters the men’s 1,500 as a favourite to win a medal in the event, as he has been for each of the individual distance races in Milan-Cortina.

A SECOND SHOT AT GLORY

Saskatoon’s Maïa Schwinghammer continues her Olympic debut, joining three other Canadians in the women’s dual moguls event at the Games. Schwinghammer finished fifth in the moguls earlier in the week and had said she felt she didn’t push enough in the race’s first final, then made a mistake wanting to push more in the second. The 24-year-old’s name caught the public’s attention at the Games after a CBC reporter caught her father in a street interview, where he broke into tears talking about how proud he was of his daughter.

CATCHING UP

Two Canadians, including Brighton, Ont.’s Hallie Clarke, face an uphill battle in the women’s skeleton event. Clarke, the youngest woman to win a world championship when she took the title at 19 in 2024, sits 20th in her Olympics debut after the event’s first two runs. She is 2.25 seconds behind the leader, Janin Flock of Austria. Also competing in the race is North Vancouver, B.C.’s Jane Channell, who placed above Clarke after two runs, in 15th. Channell was 1.74 seconds behind Flock.

LAST CHANCE FOR GOLD

Alpine skiing star Marco Odermatt of Switzerland has one last chance to take home a gold medal from the Games after coming into Milan Cortina with many anticipating multiple top finishes. Odermatt currently has a silver and a bronze from the Games, but has been outshone by Swiss teammate Franjo von Allmen, who has won three golds. Odermatt is the defending gold medallist in the men’s giant slalom event, having won the race in Beijing four years ago. The only man in Olympic history to repeat as giant slalom champion at the Games is Italian legend Alberto Tomba, who won in 1984 and 1988.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 13, 2026.