MILAN (AP) — In net for the U.S. against Denmark at the Olympics on Saturday night, Jeremy Swayman gave up a goal from 95 feet out that could get talked about for years to come.
Nicholas B. Jensen sent a seemingly harmless shot toward Swayman from just past the center red line. Swayman moved his glove, and the puck went in over his right shoulder.
The goal gave Denmark a 2-1 lead over the heavily favored Americans just past the midway point of the first period. Jensen had scored three goals in 11 years of international play before this.
On the NBC broadcast, analyst and retired goalie Brian Boucher wondered if the dark color of the boards contributed to Swayman not being able to see where the shot came from.
No matter how, it brought back memories of Belarus’ Vladimir Kopat beating Sweden’s Tommy Salo at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake on a similar long-distance shot from center ice. That goal came with 2:24 left in the quarterfinals and was responsible for one of the biggest upsets in international hockey history.
The U.S. coaching staff chose Swayman to start the second game against Denmark over Jake Oettinger with No. 1 goalie Connor Hellebuyck expected to play in the round-robin finale Sunday night against Germany. Coach Mike Sullivan said a lot went into the decision.
“At the end of the day, we’re playing three games in four nights,” Sullivan said after his team's gameday skate. “We’ve got have three guys that we know are capable of helping us win games."
Swayman was having perhaps the best NHL season of the three with the Boston Bruins and backstopped the U.S. to win the world championships last spring. Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets is the reigning league MVP, while Oettinger has helped the Dallas Stars make three consecutive deep playoff runs to the Western Conference final.
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
Denmark's Nicholas Jensen celebrates with his teammates after scoring his side's second goal during a preliminary round match of men's ice hockey between United States and Denmark at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
United States' goalkeeper Jeremy Swayman dives to makes a save as Denmark's Nick Olesen scores his side's opening goal during a preliminary round game of men's ice hockey between the United States and Denmark at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via AP)
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The International Space Station returned to full strength with Saturday’s arrival of four new astronauts to replace colleagues who bailed early because of health concerns.
SpaceX delivered the U.S., French and Russian astronauts a day after launching them from Cape Canaveral.
Last month’s medical evacuation was NASA’s first in 65 years of human spaceflight. One of four astronauts launched by SpaceX last summer suffered what officials described as a serious health issue, prompting their hasty return. That left only three crew members to keep the place running — one American and two Russians — prompting NASA to pause spacewalks and trim research.
Moving in for eight to nine months are NASA’s Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, France’s Sophie Adenot and Russia’s Andrei Fedyaev. Meir, a marine biologist, and Fedyaev, a former military pilot, have lived up there before. During her first station visit in 2019, Meir took part in the first all-female spacewalk.
Adenot, a military helicopter pilot, is only the second French woman to fly in space. Hathaway is a captain in the U.S. Navy.
“Bonjour!” Adenot called out once the capsule docked to the space station 277 miles (446 kilometers) up. Added Meir: “Grateful to be on board, and we're ready to get to work.”
NASA has refused to divulge the identity of the astronaut who fell ill in orbit on Jan. 7 or explain what happened, citing medical privacy. The ailing astronaut and three others returned to Earth more than a month sooner than planned. They spent their first night back on Earth at the hospital before returning to Houston.
The space agency said it did not alter its preflight medical checks for their replacements.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
In this image from video provided by NASA, a SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying Americans Meir and Jack Hathaway, France’s Sophie Adenot and Russia’s Andrei Fedyaev, approaches the International Space Station for docking on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (NASA via AP)
Crew 12 mission astronauts, from left, pilot Jack Hathaway, Russian cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, commander Jessica Meir and ESA astronaut Sophia Adenot, of France, leave the Operations and Checkout building before heading to pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, on a mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
