USA Hockey setting high expectations for Milano-Cortina Olympics

The United States men’s hockey team is determined to get over the hump heading into the Milano-Cortina Olympics next year.

Coming off a heartbreaking overtime gold medal loss to Canada at a fiery 4 Nations Face-Off last February, Team USA is poised to construct another talent-laden squad as NHL players return to the Olympics for the first time since 2014.

As 44 possible members gathered for USA Hockey’s orientation camp in Michigan, many echoed the same sentiment: it’s their turn.

“The expectation is to go to Milan and win the gold medal,” Vegas Golden Knights all-star Jack Eichel told reporters, per ESPN’s Emily Kaplan. “I think anything short of that, it would be disappointing.”

Team USA head coach Mike Sullivan, a part of the silver medal-winning squad in 2010 — when Sidney Crosby scored the “Golden Goal” for Canada — doubled down on the notion that it’s time for the U.S. to reclaim top spot in the sport.

“The stakes are extremely high, they’ve never been higher,” Sullivan said. “These events give us the opportunity to say we feel like the United States is at the pinnacle of the sport. We feel like we are every bit as good, if not better, than any country that competes in this game. And these events give us the opportunity to prove it.”

Six members have already been named to the United States roster: Eichel, Quinn Hughes, Auston Matthews, Charlie McAvoy and brothers Brady and Matthew Tkachuk.

Despite not capturing an Olympic gold since the famous “Miracle on Ice” win over the Soviet Union in 1980, they boast some of the NHL’s top weapons and captured the most recent IIHF World Championship. They have also shown success at various IIHF junior hockey events.

Hughes, captain of the Vancouver Cancucks, credits their recent boom to the uptick of investment into the grassroots level and knows it’s time to prove it.

“USA Hockey has put so much work in with their youth development programs, their national team development program, and I feel like they’re starting to see dividends where we do have some really, really elite players and the best players in the world,” Hughes said.

“I feel like it’s kind of gold or nothing, personally.”

The Canadians also held orientation camp on Wednesday, with the two teams scouting rosters that will be announced in late December.

Canada will participate in Group A with Switzerland, France and Czechia, while the U.S. will contest in Group C against Latvia, Denmark and Germany.