MILAN — It wasn’t dominant. It wasn’t comfortable. It was Canada at its most dangerous — relentless, patient and ruthless when it mattered most.

After falling behind 2–0 and staring at the brink of elimination, Canada stormed back to defeat Finland 3–2, punching its ticket to the gold medal game at the 2026 Winter Olympics in a semifinal that demanded everything.

With overtime looming and the tension inside the arena suffocating, Nathan MacKinnon delivered the dagger. On a late power play, MacKinnon snapped home the game-winner with just 35.2 seconds remaining, completing the comeback and sending Canada into another Olympic final.

It was also a history-making day for Connor McDavid, as his 12th point of the tournament set a new record for the most ever by an NHL player in a single Olympic Games.

Finland had seized early control. Mikko Rantanen opened the scoring on the power play, and Erik Haula stunned Canada with a short-handed strike to build a 2–0 lead, quieting the heavily pro-Canadian crowd and forcing the tournament favorites onto their heels.

But Canada responded the way contenders do.

Sam Reinhart cut the deficit in half with a poised finish, and Shea Theodore hammered home the equalizer to tilt the momentum. From there, the ice felt like it was slanted in one direction.

All of it came without captain Sidney Crosby, who was sidelined after suffering an injury in Wednesday’s quarterfinal against Czechia. In his absence, Canada leaned on its depth, its experience, and its unshakable belief.

It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t clean. But it was enough.

Canada is headed back to the gold medal game — one win away from Olympic glory.

The semifinal simmered before it boiled.

Nearly halfway through the opening frame, Sam Bennett was whistled for a bench minor for too many men, offering Finland an early chance to seize control. Instead, Canada’s penalty killers were sharp and suffocating, denying a single shot and restoring a measure of early composure.

Late in the period, MacKinnon tried to jolt his bench awake. Circling from behind the net, he carried the puck high into the zone, slammed on the brakes, pivoted, and fired a shot toward Juuse Saros. The Finnish goaltender read it cleanly, flashing a shoulder to turn it aside and keep the game scoreless.

Tension spiked moments later.

Bennett returned to the box after driving Florida Panthers teammate Niko Mikkola into Saros, triggering a heavy collision at the top of the crease. The Finnish netminder sprang up in frustration, gloves flying. Brad Marchand darted into the scrum, exchanging heated words with Haula as sticks and tempers tangled.

When order was finally restored, Finland struck with precision.

Off the ensuing faceoff, Rantanen found daylight and snapped a shot through traffic to open the scoring, stunning the Canadian side and silencing the arena in an instant.

Canada pushed back before the horn. McDavid carved into space and rifled a wrist shot toward the top corner, but Saros calmly gloved it down and flicked it out of danger, preserving the 1–0 edge through 20 minutes of action.

If the first period simmered, the second exploded.

Finland handed Canada an early opportunity when Sebastian Aho was sent off for interference. But instead of momentum swinging north, it tilted sharply the other way. Haula burst free while short-handed, raced in alone, and lifted a backhand top shelf over Jordan Binnington to make it 2–0 — a gut punch that echoed across the Canadian bench.

The response had to come.

With 6:25 remaining in the frame, Anton Lundell was called for high-sticking Marchand after an aggressive drive into the zone. The Finnish forward protested furiously, but the replay left little doubt. Canada returned to the power play, this time determined not to waste it.

Cale Makar stepped into a drive from the point, and Reinhart provided the finishing touch, angling his stick for a deft deflection that slipped past Saros. Just like that, the deficit was halved, and belief surged back through the red and white sweaters.

At 2–1, the game had changed again.

Canada opened the third period dictating pace, outshooting Finland 22–11 through the first five minutes. The urgency was undeniable — waves of pressure, bodies crashing the net, pucks funneled from every angle — but the scoreboard remained stubborn.

McDavid nearly created magic on his own, toe-dragging around Rasmus Ristolainen before the Finnish defenseman recovered with a crucial block. Moments later, the play flipped the other way, and Lundell surged into open ice, only for Binnington to get just enough of the puck to keep it a one-goal game.

Then came the equalizer.

Just past the midway point, Theodore unleashed a heavy slap shot from the blue line. The puck struck Saros in the chest and fluttered behind him into the net. Finland immediately protested, claiming goaltender interference after earlier contact in the crease. Officials reviewed the sequence and determined Haula had initiated the collision by shoving Marchand into his own goaltender. The goal stood. Tie game.

The tension was unbearable now — every shift magnified, every touch decisive.

With 2:35 remaining, MacKinnon snapped a dangerous backhand that clipped the knob of Saros’ stick and caromed wide. As he chased down the rebound, Mikkola caught him high with a stick, sending Canada to a critical late power play.

This time, there would be no wasted opportunity.

Canada swarmed. The puck moved with purpose, the arena rising with every touch. McDavid feathered a perfect feed across the seam, and MacKinnon hammered a one-timer short side that ripped cleanly into the net with just 35 seconds remaining.

Finland challenged for offside in desperation. The review upheld the goal, and the failed challenge handed Canada a final power play to drain the clock.

The comeback was complete.

Now we await the winner of United States vs. Slovakia to determine who Canada will face for the gold medal.