Denmark claimed its first victory of the 2026 Winter Olympics with a 4-2 defeat of Latvia in a Group C preliminary game at Rho Arena in Milan. Nick Olesen scored twice and added an assist, while Frederik Andersen made 33 saves to anchor the win. The result positions Denmark to face Czechia in the quarterfinal qualifier.
Denmark entered the game after losses to Germany (3-1) and the United States (6-3), making the matchup against Latvia crucial for momentum in the tournament.
The game started swiftly, with Olesen scoring just 23 seconds in to give Denmark a 1-0 lead. He tipped a pass from Mikkel Aagaard past Latvia goaltender Arturs Silovs, tying the fastest goal from the start of an Olympic game involving NHL players. Aagaard extended the advantage to 2-0 at 4:54 on a power-play rebound of Christian Wejse's shot, marking Denmark's first man-advantage goal of the Olympics.
Nikolaj Ehlers made it 3-0 at 16:28, redirecting a shot from Markus Lauridsen off Oliver Bjorkstrand's skate. Latvia responded late in the first period, with Kristaps Zile scoring from the blue line at 19:44 to cut the deficit to 3-1 during a delayed penalty.
In the second period, Eduards Tralmaks tapped in a pass from Zile at 6:41 to make it 3-2. Latvia pressed, hitting the crossbar and goal post but failing to tie. Andersen stopped 14 of 15 shots in the third period as Denmark outshot Latvia 6-14 in the frame.
Olesen sealed the win with an empty-net goal at 17:38, finishing with three points. Eight Danish players recorded points, including Ehlers' first goal of the tournament and Aagaard's multi-point effort.
"It was nice to finally get a win here, it gives us confidence," Aagaard said. Andersen added, "Guys tried to empty the tank a little bit to get a good result today." Latvia's Silovs noted, "It's always hard to play back-to-back games and we gave a lot yesterday."
This marks Denmark's first Olympic win with NHL players. Both teams advance to qualification playoffs on February 17, with Denmark facing Czechia and Latvia playing Sweden. Group C standings: USA first, Germany second, Denmark third, Latvia fourth.
