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Milano Cortina 2026: Para Ice Hockey Preview

What will we be watching and why: A masterclass in schedule psychology at the Paralympic Winter Games 05 Mar 2026
Czechia facing Italy on Para ice hockey
ⒸRyan Pierse/Getty Images
By Daniel Christian Gagné l World Para Ice Hockey

For as long as athletes have been asked about their thoughts on their competition schedule or preferred opponents, the same generic, almost pre-recorded “we don’t care who we play” response has been the default answer – a heroic public display of gamesmanship in the face of adversity in the quest for athletic glory.

“People say you don’t care who you play, but I don’t think so,” once confessed Wayne Gretzky. “I think you always root for the team you think you may have an easier time with.” And dare we say that little behavioural and emotional assessment is required for us to declare that truer words have never been spoken, even when including that other quote by the Great One, the one which he now shares with Michael Scott. Life, if nothing else, has a sense of humour.

In 2026 Paralympic Winter Games terms, however, it gives context to the way players have been looking at their schedules, as immediately upon its reception, and countless additional times since then, they have all been attempting to forecast results and the various paths to podium finishes. And in that spirit, we will be examining the Milano Cortina 2026 Para ice hockey schedule, not just in terms of game times and venues, but in the significance each day holds, deep-diving into possible outcomes and their big-picture significance.

In short, what to watch and why.

The Groups

A proper understanding of the schedule begins with a genuine grasp of the groups and how each team is entering Milano, as this allows us to subsequently comprehend the dynamics at hand.

Let’s begin with Group A (Milano Cortina 2026 ranking in parentheses):

•    United States (1)
•    China (4)
•    Germany (5)
•    Italy (8)

Outlook: This is the deeper of the two groups. The United States are defending world and Paralympic champions, riding the momentum of a dominant victory at the Buffalo 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championships.

China also had an impressive showing, ultimately losing the bronze medal in overtime to the Czechs. The Chinese demonstrated that they have successfully narrowed the gap that previously separated them from the final step on the podium, even controlling play for large portions of the game. They just now need to capture that elusive final victory.

Team Germany, meanwhile, was the event’s Cinderella story. As such, do not attach much importance to their slow start in the event. The team that completed the tournament was significantly better than the one that started it, and now, with months of additional preparation, a medal-game participation is not beyond their reach.

And finally, Team Italy is arriving after an undefeated B-Pool Championship victory, including an impressive come-from-behind triumph over Japan. Keep an eye on defenseman Nikko Landeros, who completed the five-game event with a mind-boggling 24-goal, six-assist tour de force. The host country will be strongly motivated to defend its home ice in front of its fans.

In short, USA might be heavy favourites to emerge undefeated, but beyond that, the waters are murky.

As for Group B, we have:

•    Canada (2)
•    Czechia (3)
•    Japan (6)
•    Slovakia (8)

Outlook: Perhaps not as deep from the top as Group A, but holy hell, is there a lot of bad blood between these teams.

First, the Canadians were clearly displeased with their World Championships performance, immediately making a change behind the bench following the conclusion of the tournament. And as if a new head coach wasn’t enough to signal their greater aspirations, they also announced that Greg Westlake was coming out of retirement to compete in his sixth Paralympics, adding his legendary scoring touch in reinforcement of the Great White North’s gold-medal-seeking efforts.

Team Czechia, meanwhile, showed a lot of good things during the event, being the only squad to lose to the USA by a single goal. But, by their own admission, the bronze medal has been getting more difficult to win with each passing year, underlining how the competition is catching up to them. Even more so, it can be argued that Patrik Sedlacek stole that final game for them, as the Czech goaltender (or ninja on that day) made himself large enough to eclipse the sun – which, ironically, is exactly what he will metaphorically be asked to do again during group play.

How so? Because the Japanese shocked the world with a strong qualification performance, which included upset victories over Slovakia and Norway. The work ethic Team Japan brings to the table is second to none, and with the Czech and Slovak coaching staffs generally preferring to use shorter benches, mettles will be tested.

And finally, speaking of Slovakia, don’t let the ranking number fool you. To be blunt, while their performance at the Worlds and Qualification events might feel underwhelming by their standards, they enter the tournament on a redemption arc, led by one of the best defensemen in the sport, team captain Martin Joppa.

So, while Team Canada will be favoured to emerge at the top of the group’s standings, every team in this pool enters the tournament with something to prove, a score to settle, and a chip on their shoulder as big as their ambitions.

 

Playoff Format

The format is straightforward. Each team plays one game against the other three in its group. The top two move on to the semifinals in a 1-versus-2 crossover format, while the bottom two will play in the seeding games, again in crossover style.

Outlook: Canada and USA are entering this competition with targets on their backs, each perceiving the other as an unavoidable obstacle on the road to a golden journey. Interestingly, however, given the scheduling, they will feel mounting pressure to win each of their round-robin games as the other one wins theirs, secretly hoping to avoid facing one another in the semifinals, perhaps even silently wishing to win their semi while the other one slips and loses theirs.

And favourites or not, a semifinal loss is very much a possibility. While whoever these two teams play might be underdogs on paper, it is much easier for a dark horse to pull off an upset in a semifinal game than in a final, when the favourite can see the shine of the gold medal’s reflection staring back at them. International hockey is filled with these David-over-Goliath moments.

The Schedule

Day 1 – The Curtain Rises (7 March)

Welcome to Day 1 at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena.

The puck drops with athletes breaking the ice to the following slate of games:

Group B – Czechia (3) vs. Japan (6)
Group A – China (4) vs. Germany (5)
Group A – United States (1) vs. Italy (8)
Group B – Canada (2) vs. Slovakia (7)

Circle your calendars for the China vs. Germany game.

Boom.

Right on Day 1, a medal-round spot will most likely be decided with this game. Yes, their last matchup at the 2025 World Championships was one-sided, but once more, the Germans were a different team at that time, and the one that closed the event had severely bridged the gap. So immediately from the start, we will find out whether the Deutschland representatives have fully been able to catch up. Be on high upset alert.

In other games, the first contest of the day will be a test for Team Czechia, as hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard. The Czechs have the more talented team of the two, no doubt, but Team Japan’s work ethic propelled them to an 8-0 victory over Team Norway in November, while the Czechs only won 4-0 against the same Norwegian squad in May.

Meanwhile, drawing USA and Canada for their first game will be a tough proposition for both Italy and Slovakia, as the two North American teams are notoriously strong starters. But it will also give the two challengers a chance to see the field without giving away too much of their own hands.
Subsequently, they will both be starting the rest of their round-robin matchups with a knight on f3.

Day 2 – Patterns Emerge Where the Rubber Meets the Road (9 March)

Group A – China (4) vs. Italy (8)
Group B – Czechia (3) vs. Slovakia (7)
Group A – Germany (5) vs. United States (1)
Group B – Japan (6) vs. Canada (2)

Day 2 pulses differently, beginning with an existential game for Team China, regardless of the result of their first game. In fact, it’s difficult to determine whether this game means more to them after a win or a loss. Should they have lost their first game, they will absolutely need to win this one to preserve any hope of a medal-round participation. Whereas, should they have won that first matchup, a victory here would clinch a spot in the semis, also dodging a must-win with USA still on deck.

In the second game of the day, the Slovaks will be called upon to display their resolve. The sixth-place finish at the Worlds, the loss to Japan at the Qualifiers — it will all have been worth it if they win this game. Furthermore, it is worth noting that after said loss to the Japanese, Slovakia responded with character victories over Norway and South Korea, proving that they did have plenty of fight left in them and that they could rebound from adversity.

From the Czechs’ perspective, the contrast is cinematic, as a loss would be devastating to their medal hopes, especially as their next game is against Canada. So do expect Czechia to play desperate from the start, wanting to clinch a spot in the medal round after two games. Do not expect it to be easy.

The same way the Germany versus China game was of critical importance, this matchup will be Group B’s equivalent. Whoever wins this game should be playing for a medal.

And finally, similarly to the previous day, the two North American teams are expected to continue their winning ways, especially as playing in the late games could allow them to clinch playoff participation with victories. Tough spots to be in for both Germany and Japan, to be sure, but ones that do set them up for some very interesting Day 3 scenarios.

 

Day 3 – Letting the Chips Fall Wherever They Might (10 March)

Group A – Italy (8) vs. Germany (5)
Group A – United States (1) vs. China (4)
Group B – Canada (2) vs. Czechia (3)
Group B – Slovakia (7) vs. Japan (6)

“If you lose this game, you will take it to your graves.” Such were the words of Herb Brooks to his United States men’s hockey team before securing gold at the 1980 Olympics. And on Day 3 of the 2026 Paralympics, every game will have at least one coach making the same statement to his team. Every. Game.

First, if Germany pulls off the upset victory in its opener versus China, the Italy game then becomes the victory that launches it into the medal round. Meanwhile, a loss would open the door to the tie-breaking system, which includes roads that lead to the Germans playing in the seeding games, thus nullifying any underdog heroics. Therefore, the pressure will be enormous on the black, red, and gold, facing off against a host country that will be playing the spoiler role in a pressure-free climate. How did Group A end up with such a deep pool?

Concurrently, the importance of the United States versus China game will be dictated by the results from the previous two days. If both teams are undefeated, the two squads will truthfully be playing to avoid Team Canada in the semifinals, the presumptive first-place team in the other group. However, and almost more interestingly, if Team China loses its opener against Germany, this game becomes one of survival, as its only hope for advancement is to create a three-way tie of 2–1 records (with Germany and the USA) and hope for the goal-differential tiebreaker to go its way. Once again, how did Group A end up with such a deep pool?

Meanwhile, in Group B, both the Canadians and Czechs will be entering the event hoping their third game is strictly for first place in the division and nothing else. To begin with, this game will be played after Group A has finalized its standings but before Group B has done likewise with its own, and with all challengers silently hoping to save USA for the final, this game would dictate who plays the red, white, and blue delegation first.

However, a single loss by either of them would drastically alter those plans.

For you see, in the event that either of them does lose a game in the round robin, then this game takes on so much more importance, as it would be that team’s turn to try to create the three-way tie. So, in a game that features Tyler McGregor and Radek Zelinka potentially facing off in a winner-only-advances game, we must ask: how did Group B end up having such an edge to it?

And finally, in the last contest of the day, should Slovakia or Japan have won their previous game against Czechia, not only will their coach be reminding them of the Herb Brooks quote before the game, but he will be lecturing them with it all night long, for a loss could erase their previous exploits.

For Slovakia, a victory would allow it to advance while avenging its Qualification Round defeat. For Japan, it would mean the advancement of its programme to new heights. So, with a game showcasing the team with the biggest chip on its shoulder versus the hardest-working group in the tournament, we must ask once more: how did Group B end up having such an edge to it?

Funnelling the Scenarios

Clearly, this can go in a lot of different directions, so which ones are the most likely?

First, if history is any indicator, Team Canada and Team USA should emerge undefeated from the round-robin portion. They will be tested, particularly on Day 3, but each team’s success will push the other to do better, with players on both teams eyeing each other for a golden showdown.

Having said that, it isn’t to say upsets aren’t on the horizon. Pay very close attention to the China versus Germany game on Day 1 and the Czechia versus Slovakia face-off on Day 2. Both those contests are on maximum upset alert, especially the first one. Also, more than any other game, they are the two matchups most likely to impact the rest of the standings in their respective groups. In fact, the significance of the entire slate of Day 3 games will, for the most part, be riding on those two results.

In Conclusion

So, while the temptation is to let the round robin play out and focus in during the playoffs, doing so would be to skip over some of the most competitive games and intriguing storylines the event has to offer. Eight teams, eight backstories, and a dozen ways for things to go catastrophically wrong – or beautifully right.

And ultimately, the Milanese ice won’t care about rankings, nor will it have any patience for excuses, ruthlessly levelling the playing field down to how each sled is dashing across its surface on that day, and, if nothing else, history has a way of bending toward chaos.

Is it 7 March yet?
 

Related Topics

Milano Cortina 2026
Para Ice Hockey

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