2026 Olympic Men’s Hockey: Top standouts from Denmark vs. Germany
Everyone knew Group C was going to be a difficult one to get out of unscathed, but Germany will be happy with their 3-1 win over Denmark.
Neither team will play on Friday, but both will have doubleheaders over the weekend. Germany will take on Latvia to kick off Saturday’s action, while Denmark will hope to dethrone an American team coming off a big win of its own.
Germany’s top stars came to play. Leon Draisaitl needed just 23 seconds to tip a puck past Frederik Andersen, making it 1-0. Tim Stutzle would score Germany’s second goal of the game at 24:20, and a third goal late in the stanza, but only after Oskar Fisker Mølgaard tallied his first Olympic goal to tie things up near the end of the first. The Danes eventually just ran out of steam, handing Germany the victory.
Here’s a look at the top performers from Thursday night:
Denmark
#12 Oscar Fisker Mølgaard, C (Seattle Kraken): OFM is a two-way beast. The AHL forward scored Denmark’s first goal – a fluky one, but a goal, nonetheless. From there, Fisker Mølgaard’s two-way game was on point, often winning the puck battles in his own zone before getting the puck to a shooter at the other end. Fisker Mølgaard is smart, strong, and has continued to improve at finding scoring opportunities in dangerous areas.
#24 Nikolaj Ehlers, RW (Carolina Hurricanes): Like Juraj Slafkovsky on Wednesday, Ehlers just finds a way to elevate everyone around him at a tournament like this. Ehlers’ speed and raw skill make him difficult to contain anytime he’s on the ice. He’s strong, smart and has an excellent release. Remember how much better the Danes were once Ehlers joined them for the World Championship playoffs last spring? That’s what it felt like when he held the puck today.
Germany
#53 Moritz Seider, D (Detroit Red Wings): As expected, Seider was Germany’s best defenseman. The big, big man did an excellent job of suffocating the Danish attack on the rush, giving them little to work with. Seider has a great wingspan that allows him to consistently take space away with his stick. He also forces you to the outside more than most players are comfortable with. Look for Seider to play around 30 minutes most nights.
#18 Tim Stutzle, C (Ottawa Senators): Stutzle couldn’t let Draisaitl have all the fun. The Senators’ star scored a great goal from the slot on the one-timer in the second, and he made it 3-1 Germany after his pass attempt went off a Danish defender and in. Stutzle’s speed was on full display, and he was a handful with pace on the attack.
#29 Leon Draisaitl, C (Edmonton Oilers): After watching his buddy Connor finish with three assists in Canada’s opener, Draisaitl wanted in on the fun. It didn’t even take 30 seconds into his first shift for him to score his debut Olympic goal, which clearly scared the Danes right out of the gate. Draisaitl’s speed, physicality and raw talent proved to be too much for the Danish defenders to tackle.
#44 Josh Samanski, LW (Edmonton Oilers): He’s like a bull in a China shop. Samanski hit everyone in sight, allowing Draisaitl and Freddy Tiffels the freedom to create offense all over the ice. Samanski is a strong forward who hustles his tail off, looking for opportunities to create havoc every time he possibly can.
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