Locked On Penguins - Daily Podcast On The Pittsburgh Penguins - OLYMPICS SQUAD: SUPREMACY: Team USA, Canada COMPETE as Hilary Knight & Marie-Philip Poulin CHASE Olympic Glory

Episode Date: February 10, 2026

Team USA and Team Canada dominate the Olympic women’s hockey tournament—are they locked in for another gold medal showdown? Hilary Knight breaks records while Marie-Philip Poulin’s injury sparks new questions. Is Sweden or Czechia ready to crash the party and claim bronze, or is the gap still too wide?Glenn Dreyfuss, Gil Martin, and Kyle Kjer spotlight the rivalry series, competitive edge from the PWHL, and how legendary goaltenders like Ann-Renée Desbiens are tipping the balance. Key topics include USA’s offensive surge, power play threats, and the impact of increased professional opportunities for women athletes. Special insights explore Abby Murphy and Sarah Nurse as rising stars, and whether the Americans’ recent winning streak could lead to overconfidence. Don’t miss expert analysis on medal match predictions, historic developments in women’s hockey, and why this US-Canada clash might be the greatest rivalry in sports.Everydayer ClubIf you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. Click here to learn more and join your team’s community: https://lockedonpodcasts.com/everydayerclub Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!QuoMake this the year where no opportunity — and no customer — slips away.Try Quo for free plus get 20% off your first 6 months when you go tohttp://Quo.com/lockedonnhl. FactorHead to http://factormeals.com/lockedonnhl50off and use code lockedonnhl50off to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year. IndeedNow, you can speed up your hiring process with a $75 Sponsored Job Credit. Just go to https://indeed.com/lockedon right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Terms and conditions apply.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelThe Winter Games are on. And there’s no better way to follow them than with a bet on FanDuel. FanDuel - Play your game. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Over Hockey Podcast. Are Canada and the U.S. on a collision course in women's Olympic hockey? That and more next on today's NHL Olympic Squad Show. You are Talking Puck with the NHL Squad Show. From the Oilers to the Stars, Golden Knights, and the Panthers, the Rangers, Avalanche, and yes, even the Maple Leafs. The Locked-on Podcast Network brings together all its local experts to provide the scoops, break and comprehensive looks at all the NHL with plenty of trash talk to go with it. Don't miss the hard hits and glove dropping hot takes on the Locked-on NHL Squad Show.

It's time to drop the puck. Gilmartin here. Welcome everybody to our special Olympic edition of the Locked on NHL Squad show. So glad you could join us today as we talk a little Olympic hockey and with me today to focus on the women's side of the. of the bracket, Glenn Dreyfus from Locked-on Cracken, and Kyle Carr of Locked-on Ducks. And gentlemen, your first impression so far of what we've seen from the women at the Olympics. Well, one of the things I heard covering the PWHL Torrent was that people expected this women's

tournament to be played at even a higher level than in past years. The reason being, this is the first Olympics with players who have been in a sustainable pro league playing. So they're not just trying to find pickup games for pre-Olympic competition and tune-ups. They've been playing competitive games against a lot of other Olympic quality athletes. And I think it has been reflected in the quality of play. but Gil and Kyle, the fact still remains that in international women's hockey, it's the U.S. and Canada and then everybody else. Absolutely.

I was just going to say the energy has been really, really fun to watch. These games have been on it. Primetime, you know, you go to a restaurant and they're on and they're playing high speed. And I've had people while I'm watching it say like, oh, is this the men's a Olympic team. And it's like, no, that's the women's on right now. And America's been crushing it. What, 15 goals now in three games for the team. And they bring the energy and you've got Hillary Knight setting records. And it's just been a really exciting year to start things off. It really has been. And, you know, the thing is that the level of play just continues to get

higher and higher in women's hockey. And that's a great thing. But in order to get to that, next level, you probably need more than just the U.S. and Canada to be like the top two and then everybody else. Is there one team so far that in your mind is maybe the top candidate to fill that next spot? No. That's the I was going to say maybe Sweden. I was going to say maybe Finland, but they got crushed by the U.S. but I think Sweden may be the closest. Well, to be fair to the Finns. Before they were ravaged by their opposition, they were ravaged by a bout of norovirus. Their game against Canada had to be postponed to February 12th. And even though they had a full bench starting this weekend, you know they weren't at full health. So

got to give them a pass. But look at the history, Gill and Kyle. There's been women's hockey at the Olympics for 28 years. U.S. or Canada has been in the final each of those years. There's only one time in those 28 years when it wasn't U.S. versus Canada. I think Sweden kind of snuck in there in 2006. But other than that, it's been U.S. Canada. And it'll probably stay that way for a little while, although the teams from Europe are catching up, but they're not there yet.

It definitely doesn't help, too, that the USA and Canada women did that whole rivalry series where they toured around North America playing at big NHL Barnes like a couple years ago before the PWHL. And so they've best been having this rivalry and this competition and extra playtime that you haven't really been seeing with the other main hockey. hockey countries. Yeah, I mean, getting to play those games and being tuned up definitely helps. No question about that. And look, as far as the virus goes, Glenn, I mean, that's not something that is in anybody's control. I mean, you could try to contain it once it starts. But unfortunately,

you get a lot of people coming from a lot of different places, you know, stuff like that can break out. And now it's just a question of trying to contain it. Well, you're trying to contain the U.S. and Canada, and that's a tough enough task when you're at full strength. So you're right. You can't do anything about it, but it's not an excuse. It was a reality. But you look at the Canada and U.S. dominance, it's not reflected so much in the goal, but in the shots on goal. when Team Canada played Switzerland, I think the shots on goal were 55 to 6. When the U.S. played Finland, the shots on goal were 49 to 11. Today, U.S. be Finland, 5-0, shots were 50 to 21.

So I hope they have some ambulances ready for the other. team's goalies to take them out of the arenas. Or at least that the backup goalies are ready for the next game because, wow, these goalies are going to get worn down. I mean, that sounds like a box score from a game with the Kansas City Scouts 50 years ago. Good old junior scores. Yeah, yeah, kind of. But again, the gap is closing.

And I think the key is that we are seeing some very entertaining hockey so far. in spite of the one-sidedness of games that involve either the United States or Canada and one of the other teams. Definitely. It's true. But if you want entertainment, if you really want Winter Olympics entertainment, 2 p.m., tomorrow, I think USA Network on cable is carrying the game, the preliminary round, U.S. versus Canada. And it's not overhyped to say that this is one of the great rivalries in all of sports.

These are players who are teammates in college, teammates on their pro teams. But as one team USA player said a couple of days ago, once we get on the ice and international competition. All bets are off. Oh, yeah. I was lucky enough to go to the, when they came to the Honda Center for that rivalry series, and those girls do not like each other.

When they are in USA, red, white and blue, and the red and white of Canada, it's completely gloves off. And they play so hard. And the way they check and really work through the grind of the season. And now to see them playing professionally as well, I think it's going to be an electric game and definitely the must-watch game up until we get the Canada USA of the men's side, which will be exciting as well. Wait, I'm calling. Wait a second, Kyle. Canada USA, that's on the men's side. That's all NHL players.

True. Yeah, it'll be intense. But these women have had that rivalry. for a lot longer. And remember, there was a time when this is the only time anyone paid attention to women's hockey was at the Olympics. So I'll suggest to you that the women's Olympic hockey, U.S. and Canada, takes a backseat to nobody. There we go. And I'm looking forward to just now these younger, the next generation, like, the the girls that are playing through junior hockey now get to watch not only these women have the rivalry at the international, but to know that they are also professional hockey players playing

in the Olympics and representing their country. And now girls get to really strive for that as a true objective. And it's not just reduced to the two USA and Canada teams. You have actual a league now and everything's really coming together. And I think we're really getting to witness the pinnacle and takeover of women's hockey. Yeah, and again, the progress that women's hockey is making is just great to see. And hopefully it continues along that line. Well, you mentioned the big game Tuesday afternoon. We're going to talk a little bit more about that matchup.

Preview it. We've got that next on the squad show. Today's episode is brought to you by Factor Cold Days, pack schedules, and big goals, that's winter. And when there's not a lot of time to cook, eating well can feel like another thing on the to-do list. That's where Factor comes in. Factor makes eating healthy easy

with fully prepared meals designed by dieticians and crafted by chefs so you can eat well without the planning, prepping, or cooking. Factor meals are always fresh, never frozen, and ready in about two minutes. The ingredients stand out. Lean proteins, colorful veggies,

whole foods, and healthy fats. there are tons of variety with 100 rotating meals each week so it never gets boring. Head to Factor Meals.com slash locked on NHL 50 off. Use code locked on NHL 50 off to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year. So eat like a pro this month with Factor. New subscriptions only varies by plan. One free breakfast item per box for one year while subscription is active. So the big game in the preliminary round, the big focus, USA Canada, Tuesday, 2 o'clock Eastern Time, as you mentioned, or soon thereafter, 210.

First of all, what makes this rivalry so special? Because, you know, Glenn, you mentioned, yeah, this could be, you know, the biggest rivalry in hockey, bar none. What makes it so electric? Well, I'll let Kyle answer first since I've been hog in airtime. here. No, you're just right there in the middle of it all, Glenn. We, I think honestly, kind of like Glenn mentioned at the beginning there, you have a lot of these girls that were teammates and they're throughout their youth as well. You know, women's hockey, I think this generation that we're watching is kind of in that middle of where programs really started to pop off for women and that there was still a select amount. So they're playing together. And, you know, after a.

certain age, that's all who you played with. And then you get split up. You're playing against each other for your different countries. So there's not only that friendship rivalry, but also the country, just that, that extra edge to it. And I think now that these girls have a platform for themselves and they're becoming professional and their whole identity is being hockey players, they really get to go out there and show which country has the best hockey players.

And a storyline for this game tomorrow, the two team captains, two of the legends of women's hockey, legends who are still playing. But in the game against the Czech Republic today, the captain of Team Canada, Marie-Philip Poulon, she was checked hard, went down awkwardly in the first place. period, did not return to the game. So right now, we don't know her status for tomorrow against Team USA. And they may even elect to hold her out because Canada is guaranteed to go on to the medal round. So we'll see if she even plays. She went back to the bench for a little while. She appeared to be in discomfort. But she didn't come out for the start of the

second period and we didn't see her after that. So one thing to watch is, will Marie Philip Poulan play and if she does this three-time gold medalist in the Olympics, how much she'll play and how effective she'll play. And on the other side, you brought up the record-breaking Hillary Knight. She's got two goals in this tournament. That gives her 14 for her Olympic competition. This is her fifth and final Olympics. She's got 14 tighter with Natalie Darwitz and Katie King for the record among U.S. Olympians. So if she scores a goal against Canada tomorrow, she'll be the record holder. And she also with two assists today is up to 34 points in her Olympic career, that is one off the U.S. record for points.

So when she gets two more points, and she assuredly will in this tournament, she could finish her last Olympics as the all-time U.S. leader in both goals and points. How about the goaltending for Canada and Renee DeBien, been a standout? how important is her performance from a Canadian perspective. Now, she's excellent in reading all of her angles and how she backs up that team candidate team. Obviously, USA is going to have their work cut out for them to try to score on her. And she can really backstop this team to a victory against the USA forwards.

And we've seen her have excellent performances before in this. these international play. So expect them to really be trying to get shots on her. Obviously, I don't think the shots are going to be up in the 50s like we've seen against these other teams. But if she's dialed in, it's not going to be an easy game for the U.S. skaters. As far as this game is concerned, is there any possibility that these two teams hold back

a little bit knowing that the bigger game is going to be in the metal round when these two teams meet? It's possible. Maybe the coaches would want that. I'm not sure the players know how to do that. The adrenaline's going to get flowing. Now, the one thing, in the PWHL, checking is allowed, hitting is allowed. That's less so under Olympic rules.

So these teams may have to dial the physicality back a little bit from what they're used to, but every inch of the ice is going to be competed for. Both these teams in their games so far have just feasted on their power plays. So one thing for each team to look out for is to try to stay out of the box because these two teams have already shown that with the player advantage, they know how to score. That could be the difference. I'm definitely not expecting a Tampa, Florida penalty lineup like we saw at the end of the, right before the break. But definitely expect them to be, like Glenn said, it's really hard for these ladies to hold

back once you're on the ice. But maybe by roster construction, you're going to see some changes that might protect the full image of the team before they go to that metal round. but two players that I wanted to highlight before we moved on, definitely Abby Murphy on Team USA. She is such an excellent young upcoming star. And then my favorite player to watch, which unfortunately is on Team Canada, Sarah Nurse,

she is excellent. So two players to definitely keep an eye out and trying to get their team on top of the other neck tomorrow. Well, Kyle, I have a question. Some people must be watching us up in Canada. we need to be nice to our neighbors to the north. True, true. It's just, you know, it's hard to not bleed that red, white, and blue as a veteran.

But the Canadians, like, they've, they set the bar for us. And we've just been following suit since. But they've got great, great historical players on that team. And they're going to be, you know, dominating this, this international play for the next couple of tournaments. but to have this rivalry between the two and to be so neck and neck, we're spoiled as the fans, honestly. Thank you, Canada. Thank you, USA, because we get to be the beneficiaries.

Well, for what it's worth, guys, and maybe not much, because the rosters won't be exactly what they are on the Olympic ice surface, but the U.S. has won the last six matchups with Canada, Canada, including sweeping the last rivalry series for Zip. Makes, gives Canada even more incentive, I guess, coming into the Olympics. And is there a danger of overconfidence from the Americans? There better not be. Yes, true false pass.

Next question. Yeah. How about the goaltending for the Americans? Because they have two good alternatives. They have two good alternatives. They have two good alternatives. Here's my concern, and I guess this also goes as a concern for Canada. None of the goalies have really been tested.

I mean, how tested can you be when you only get six shots against in a game or 11 shots against in a game? So you know, this is one of those old hockey chestnuts, that goalies like to have a feel of the puck. And I have a feeling that's going to happen. tomorrow. But the main thing is for the goalies to be ready from the opening Huck drop, whoever gets the nod in goal. All right. Well, should be a really good matchup. We're looking forward to that.

We've got more to get to here on our Olympic squad show special. We'll talk a little metal predictions coming up. Someone's going to take the bronze. We don't know who it is. And then, you know, the battle for the gold, we'll talk about that and more. next on the squad show. Today's episode is brought to you by Indeed. If you've ever hired someone who looked good on paper but wasn't the right fit, you know how important that is. When you want candidates who truly match what you're looking for,

trust indeed sponsored jobs. Hiring, Indeed is all you need. Stop struggling to get your job posts seen on other sites. Indeed, sponsor jobs puts your post at the top of the page and helps you reach the right candidates faster. Sponsored jobs boosts your post to the people who are the best match for your role, and that makes a real difference. And according to Indeed data, sponsored jobs posted directly on Indeed are 90% more likely to report a hire than

non-sponsored jobs. Spend more time interviewing candidates who check all your boxes with less stress, less time, and more results using Indeed sponsored jobs. Listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at Indeed.com slash Locked on. Just go to Indeed.com slash locked on right now and support the show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Terms and conditions apply hiring. Do it the right way with Indeed. Gill, how do I look on paper? I better the more you cover me up. Oh, boo. We want to see that smile, Glenn. That's it. All right. So, you know, All the talk is about the U.S. and Canada, but let's talk about who some of the favorites are for, at least to get that bronze medal.

You never know, upsets do happen in sports, but if we assume that U.S. and Canada will be the gold medal game, who do you think are some of the favorites for the bronze? Okay, Kyle. Go ahead. Sweden is definitely my pick, I think, for bronze. They, they're the most competitive team beyond USA and Canada. And against all the other teams out there, they've, they've had good scoring, four to nothing over France, six to one over Italy.

They've, they have definitely the goal scoring necessary. I think they also have just their overall program and what they put into women's hockey. They're, they're one of the more advanced countries. out there in the women's game. So I'm going to have to go with Team Sweden for me and my choice of the bronze medalist. Sweden is a real good choice and probably who will get there

and be on the podium. But just to be contrarian, I'll say Chechia because they have been competitive, they've been better. In the world championship, in both 22 and 23, Chechia captured the bronze medal. So I think they're up and coming.

I agree with Kyle. He's right. Sweden should be considered the favorite there. But I think Chechie has the proverbial puncher's chance. But I will mention that the athletic did a simulation, put it through a computer. and found out that the chances of a USA versus Canada final for the gold medal, a greater than 99%. That's it?

Yeah, right. So you get some pretty good odds if you want to pick someone else, but wow. Wow, wow. So what will be the key both tomorrow and assuming that these predictions are right and we get a USA Canada gold medal game? how do you separate these two teams where does Canada have an edge where does the United States have an edge well I'm going to go oh go ahead Glenn your turn go ahead I think uh I think U.S. winning the last six matchups and sweeping the rivalry series

that kind of thing does put a seeded doubt on this gold medal game which is why maybe tomorrow's game is more important for Canada than it is for the U.S., Kyle? Yeah, I think that Canada definitely is going to be the hungrier team, and they're really going to be vying to put their stamp. I think hockey Canada as a whole has been kind of getting some black guys lately. And, you know, if anyone's going to turn things around for hockey Canada, it's going to be this team of incredible hockey players. And the only thing, though, is I think with, I give the credit to USA and their hockey development.

And, you know, in Canada, you got a lot more of girls that grow up playing with just other girls. Whereas out in the U.S., you got a lot more of these younger ladies that have to play up until they're, you know, 15 with boys as well. And they're the, you know, one and a few girls on the team playing against all these boys. boys. So they got to get tough, they got to get strong, and they got to get creative. And that's kind of what you see out of this USA team. I think you see a very strong, physical, but yet very creative and fast team. And Canada's a little bit more traditional and the way that they check and their angles. But again, that hunger and that want for the gold is definitely going to be something that USA has to be careful of while they're out there. Gile, I'd like to follow up on Kyle's point,

because it's really a great point. And it takes me back to being lucky enough to have covered last November's Hockey Hall of Fame inductions in Toronto. And the GM of the Montreal Victoire of the PWHL, Danielle Sauvajou, was the first woman ever elected to the Hall of Fame in the Builder Castle. There's 117 men and Daniel Solvigio. But what stood out to me and what reinforces Kyle's point is she told a story about when she was a girl in a Montreal suburb wanting to go to the rink to play hockey. She went with her older brother.

It was the first time they were going to try out for organized hockey. and as she told the story, her brother was told, yeah, okay, you go over here and here's where you go sign up and you can go play. You, Danielle, you can't play, but you see the bench over there, you see those water bottles, we'll let you fill them up. So this isn't like from the 1890s, okay? this is from just over a generation ago. So to go from that to where there were no girls' teams and the girls weren't allowed to play on the boys' teams to what we have now, where we appreciate the skill

and the entertainment that the women's game brings us tremendous strides. We're not fully where we need to be, but just the fact that we're doing a show like this, all about women's hockey is great. Absolutely. Any final thoughts? Well, you know, we're, again, we're the benefit shares of some great hockey.

And we're going to get to see some of these women really impressed on the international stage. And it's, I think you'd be remiss to not watch this if you're a hockey fan at all. It's, it's going to be extremely entertaining hockey. You know, we just had an interesting Super Bowl on Sunday. now we're going to have the female Super Bowl, well, preliminary Super Bowl with this USA Canada game on Tuesday. And it's just going to be an exciting event.

And, you know, I'm intrigued if it's going to be a high-scoring game or low. That's, it's really up to the goaltenders. But we've seen both of these teams with really high counts of goals in each game. So it's going to be interesting to see what happens if they can't score and if that frustration settles in. Last question, gentlemen. Who do you think wins Tuesday in this preliminary round, USA or Canada? Glenn? Okay.

Yeah, so that Kyle doesn't come to my house and throw eggs and rotten tomatoes, especially if Poulan doesn't play for Canada. I'm going to predict that the U.S. makes it the last seven in a row, and that Hillary Knight scores a goal, gets two points, and in the same game sets new. American records for career goals and points. Kyle. Now, I'm going to go with the reverse of the four nations, and Canada is going to take this

one, and they're going to get all pumped up, and USA's going to show up on the game that matters and gets the gold. All right. That's definitely going to be exciting, and we will, of course, have further coverage here on our squad show of both the women and the men's tournaments. Now, if you haven't already, it's time to check out our. new Everydayer Club. You'll get access to ad-free audio for your favorite team, compatible with Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and every other major podcast app. And you'll get an invite

to the members-only, Locked-On Everydayer Club Discord server, which includes group chats for most of your favorite teams. So check out the link in the show notes for more information about that. I'm Gil Martin from Locked On NHL and Locked On Islanders. I want to thank Glenn Dreyfus from Locked on Crackin. Kyle Carr from Locked on Ducks. We're joining us. And of course, thanks to Jay Foster for all his help putting this episode together and doing all the production. Have a great day, everybody.

Stay safe. And we'll see you tomorrow on our next Lockdown NHL Olympic squad show.