Puck drops on men's hockey at the Milan Cortina Olympics with NHL players

MILAN (AP) — Martin Fehervary was still catching his breath. Fresh off the ice from playing in the first men's hockey game at the Milan Cortina Olympics, the defenseman from Slovakia knew he wasn't in North America anymore.

“The pace of the game was really fast,” Fehervary said. “I felt like it was even faster than in the NHL.”

The return of the best players in the world to the Olympics got off to a frantic, fast-paced start Wednesday when Slovakia upset Finland in the first of 30 games in the tournament that will conclude with the gold medal final on Feb. 22. The NHL is participating in the Games for the first time in 12 years going back to Sochi in 2014, ending a long wait for stars from all over the world.

“Had a tough time sleeping last night, and then just getting ready for this game,” 35-year-old first-time Olympian Victor Hedman said after he scored an empty-net goal to help Sweden survive a scare from Italy and win 5-2. “Phenomenal. Nerves.”

Italy has no NHL players, and yet the host country got off to quite the start against heavily favored Sweden. Homegrown winger Luca Frigo, put Italy up 1-0 just a few minutes into the game, sparking chants of “Italia! Italia!" from the excited crowd.

“It was indescribable," captain Thomas Larkin said. "The support we got when we scored that first goal was absolutely unbelievable. It’s something that I’m sure I’ll remember for a long, long time.”

Matt Bradley, a Vancouver native whose 95-year-old grandfather Guido Garzitto is from Italy, also scored after expressing motivation to show up in men's hockey and make the country proud against some tough competition.

“A once-in-a-lifetime amazing feeling,” Bradley said. “Overjoyed with emotions for that.”

The tournament favorites get underway Thursday. The U.S. faces Latvia, while Canada takes on Czechia.

“It’s been a long process, but we’re very excited to have a game," U.S. general manager Bill Guerin said. "The players are really looking forward to it. They need a game. They want a game. Just really looking forward to getting started.”

They got to sit and watch what it might be like to take center stage at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena, which was nearly filled to the capacity of 11,600 by the time Finland’s Anton Lundell and Slovakia’s Adam Ruzicka lined up for the opening faceoff 20 minutes before 5 p.m. local time.

The crowd roared in the opening moments when scoring chances materialized and gasped when Slovakia goaltender Samuel Hlavaj stopped a slap shot from point-blank range.

“It was awesome," Hlavaj said after his team's 4-1 win. "It felt like we were playing at the home rink.”

Juraj Slafkovsky scored the first men's hockey goal in Milan for Slovakia just under eight minutes in, picking up where he left off in Beijing four years ago. He scored again in the third period, setting off a boisterous crowd that was wired from the start and even at one point did the wave.

More importantly than that, the fans were loud — and players noticed.

"I didn’t really expect anything like that (or) close it," Slovakia defenseman and two-time Stanley Cup champion Erik Cernak said. "They were amazing. It felt like we were playing at home. There was so many Slovakian fans and everybody, so I’m glad they came here and supported us and hopefully we gave them a great show.”

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Sweden's Mika Zibanejad (rear C) shoots and scores his team fourth goal during the men's preliminary round Group B Ice Hockey match between Sweden and Italy at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (Alexander Nemenov/Pool Photo via AP)

Italy's goalkeeper Damian Clara (20) makes a save against Sweden's William Nylander (88) during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey between Italy and Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Slovakia's Adam Ruzicka (21), left, challenges Finland's Niko Mikkola (77) during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey between Slovakia and Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Finland's Sebastian Aho (20), left, challenges Slovakia's Dalibor Dvorsky (15) during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey between Slovakia and Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Finland's Niko Mikkola (77)challenges Slovakia's Tomas Tatar (90) during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey between Slovakia and Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Finland's Eetu Luostarinen (27) top and Slovakia's Simon Nemec (17) bottom scuffle in the second period during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via AP)

Slovakia's goalkeeper Samuel Hlavaj, right, makes a save against Finland's Joel Armia, center, and Finland's Erik Haula during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey between Slovakia and Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

DENVER (AP) — Brent Burns took a wayward stick to the face while playing for San Jose in October 2013 that ended up costing him teeth and time on the ice.

Since his return — Nov. 21, 2013, to be precise — he's been a permanent fixture in every lineup. Burns, now 41 years old and with the Colorado Avalanche, is set to play in his 1,000th straight regular-season game Saturday at Dallas.

The bearded blueliner has skated through the bumps and bruises that come with delivering checks and deflecting slap shots. So much so that Avalanche coach Jared Bednar can’t wait to one day sit down with Burns and discuss all the ailments that may have kept many a player sidelined for days, weeks and maybe even months.

“He plays through them like it’s not a big deal,” said Bednar, whose team currently owns the NHL's top seed with eight games remaining, including the pivotal contest with the Stars (six points back). “(The streak) is an incredible accomplishment. It’s hard to believe.”

For Burns, it's a streak that's involved plenty of good fortune along the way.

“You've got pucks flying around your head that you don’t see, skates popping up, guys falling on the ice,” Burns said Friday after practice. "There are so many little things that happen 100 times a game. Or you look at your visor after a game, it’s all marked up. It’s a tough game.

"It’s special to think back about some of the games that I went through that I probably shouldn’t have been (in), but I think that’s what makes it special, too. ... A lot of luck — probably why I hate talking about it.”

Burns, who turned 41 on March 9, joined the Avalanche on a one-year deal this season to chase the only thing missing from his resume — a Stanley Cup title.

He's become another leader/mentor on the Avalanche. He still chips in goals, too, on a high-scoring team that boasts Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Martin Necas. Burns has 11 tallies this season, joining Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom as the only defensemen in league history to notch double-digit goals at 40 or older.

But Burns' specialty remains putting his 6-foot-5, 228-pound frame to good use on opponents who venture into his territory. That’s what makes his streak so remarkable — all the punishment he dishes out and takes. He’s closing in on the all-time ironman streak held by forward Phil Kessel, who played in 1,064 consecutive regular-season games from Nov. 3, 2009, to April 13, 2023.

“What Phil did was incredible,” Burns said. “He’s such a cool character to have that (record), too."

It’s a streak Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog fully appreciates. Landeskog missed three full regular seasons after helping the Avalanche to the 2022 Stanley Cup title because of a lingering knee injury.

“He comes to the rink with a great attitude," Landeskog explained. "He wants to be here. He’s excited to come to work.”

Burns also arrives to the rink lugging around his military-style backpack that’s stuffed with everything necessary to keep him on skates. There’s a cloud of mystery surrounding the precise contents of the heavy pack, though. Whatever it may contain — rumors of recovery gear to his own coffee setup — there's no denying it's become a healing elixir. Burns is in his 22nd NHL season and about to play in his 1,572nd career contest Saturday. The 2016-17 Norris Trophy winner is still averaging nearly 19 minutes a game and has 83 blocked shots this season.

The streak certainly impresses goaltender Scott Wedgewood.

“In my position alone, you’ll do something one game and your hip locks up a little bit,” Wedgewood said. “It’s like, ‘Thank God, I’m not playing the next one. It feels like crap right now.’

“That happens 15 times a year, just on me, let alone taking body checks and slap shots. Playing as much as he does now at that age, keeping that body fresh and everything? He probably wouldn’t be the one to tell you, but he’s probably played through thousands of different nuances.”

Burns made his NHL debut on Oct. 8, 2003, with Minnesota after being a first-round pick by the Wild. He spent seven seasons with Minnesota, 11 in San Jose and three more in Carolina before joining Colorado.

His lone appearance in the Stanley Cup final was in 2016 with the Sharks, where they lost in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Burns has played in 135 career playoff contests.

His current games streak started Nov. 21, 2013 — he played right wing that season — when he returned from his injury and promptly scored a goal. In his 999th straight game Wednesday against Vancouver, he delivered a goal and an assist to become the fifth different defensemen to notch a 30-point season while in their 40s.

“It’s just ridiculous,” Makar said of the streak before suffering an upper-body injury Monday against Calgary that will keep him out a few games. “For him to be able to go out there every night and make an impact, and not just float around and do the minimum, is pretty spectacular, especially at his age.”

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Washington Capitals center Dylan Strome (17) passes the puck against Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns (84) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, March 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns, left, drives past Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg in the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns (84) smiles at his teammates at the end of the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, March 20, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)