MILAN, Italy – For the first time, the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) is home to Olympic gold medalists, as four alumni of NCHC teams captured a gold medal with the U.S. men’s hockey team, which defeated Team Canada, 2-1, in overtime on Sunday in the final event of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan. It was Team USA’s first men’s hockey Olympic gold since 1980.
 
Former Omaha forward Jake Guentzel (2013-16), former North Dakota defenseman Jake Sanderson (2020-22), former Colorado College defenseman Jaccob Slavin (2013-15), and former UND forward Brock Nelson (2010-12), who played for North Dakota just before the NCHC’s creation, all won their first Olympic gold medal on Sunday with a thrilling victory over Team USA’s rival to the north.
 
All four alumni played in all six of Team USA’s games at the Olympics. Guentzel, who previously won a Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins and is now a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning, scored a goal in a win over Denmark on Feb. 14, while finishing the fortnight +2 with 13 shots on goal.
 
Nelson, a member of the Colorado Avalanche, tallied three points for Team USA, including a pair of goals in the opening win over Latvia on Feb. 12. Sanderson, now with the Ottawa Senators, handed out two assists during the Olympics, both in a win over Germany on Feb. 15. He also put 10 shots on goal across six games in Milan, which were his second Olympics having also played in the 2022 Winter Olympics for Team USA.
 
Slavin, an assistant captain of the Carolina Hurricanes, handed out an assist in the win over Denmark and finished the Olympics with a +4 plus/minus. Slavin and Sanderson also helped anchor a USA penalty kill that finished a perfect 17-for-17 in the tournament, including an extended 5-on-3 kill against Canada on Sunday.
 
Along with the quartet on Team USA, Minnesota Duluth sophomore netminder Adam Gajan served as the third-string goaltender for Team Slovakia, which finished in fourth place at the 2026 Olympics. Gajan was the lone active NCAA player on an Olympic men’s hockey roster. Former Western Michigan forward Frederik Tiffels (2014-17) totaled four points in five games for Germany with two goals and two assists, while former St. Cloud State forward Patrick Russell (2014-16) played in four games for Team Denmark at the Olympics.
 
The 2026 Games marked the third straight Winter Olympics that featured NCHC players, along with 2018 and 2022. Team USA’s other men’s hockey Olympic gold medals came in 1960 and 1980.