Team USA played smart to earn Olympic quarterfinal bye, Granato says

NHL players are competing at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, the first time in 12 years that they've been on this global stage. In order to provide an inside look at the experience, NHL.com has enlisted former Olympic players, coaches and others around the game to share their insights. Today, Team USA icon Tony Granato, a forward at the 1988 Calgary Olympics, and an assistant at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and head coach at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics.

Their record is perfect.

Yet there's been a bit of criticism that Team USA's play hasn't quite been that at times.

For my part, I've been impressed with their 3-0-0-0 start through the preliminary round. Remember, this is an Olympic sport where you don't get extra marks for artistic merit.

In the big picture, I think it's pretty much close to what I expected the first three games to look like. And I say that because it's a hard tournament. Opponents might not always have the same raw talent but the jerseys they are wearing represent their countries and they're going to give it their all because of that.

The one knock I've heard -- and it hasn't been a huge one -- is that they haven't looked too sharp to start games and that they've been feeling out opponents early on.

I disagree that it's a bad thing. I think it's very smart. Here's why.

WATCH: Men's Hockey Highlights from the Olympic Winter Games

I think they haven't forced things. They've committed to staying with it and playing the game the right way. And to me, that's the most important thing that that team has to do to win.

Don't try to do too much. Don't try to overpower guys. Just play the right way. And eventually, you get your chances. Eventually you'll be able to wear teams down and take advantage of the talent that they do have.

They did that, and now they enter the knockout round as the second seed. They scored 16 goals and allowed five. Hey, give Team Canada (3-0-0-0) credit for finishing as the top seed and a plus-17 goal differential but that doesn't take away from how the United States played.

Here's what I mean.

Sure, the U.S. entered play against Team Germany on Sunday knowing Canada had a plus-10 goal-differential advantage on them, but they didn't come out trying to run-and-gun and make up that deficit all at once.

It would have been easy for them to say: "We've got to win by 10 goals, or we'll finish second and might have to play Team Sweden in the quarterfinals." And I think, from that standpoint, what I liked a lot about their eventual 5-1 win against Germany is they played the right way to create their chances. They didn't try to say, "OK, we've got to score four goals in the first period so we're in a position where at the end of the game we can win by 10 to win to get the No. 1 seed."

I think it was far more important that they played the game methodically and shift by shift. I think that was obviously the message that the coaches sent, because I thought the chances they created in the first period were off forechecks. They used good defensive posture to create offense, so I don't think they cheated the game and tried to open up. And so, I think that, for one, shows the respect that the U.S. has for the tournament.

They stuck to their blueprint. It was like: "Whoever we draw, that's who we draw. We're in a position that we can beat anybody."

I think that's a great attitude to have. You have to beat anybody and everybody to win anyway, so I think that was the focus. I don't think before the game the coaches said: "We have to win by 10 today. I don't think that was part of any game plan."

Another aspect I liked to their game in the preliminary round is how they sprinkled their offense around. Brock Nelson had a big first game that reassured his importance to the team. The Tkachuk brothers and Jack Eichel have been on point. And Auston Matthews had a three-point breakout game against the Germans.

I've really been impressed with Connor Hellebuyck, who's allowed just two goals over the two games he's played. I thought he played well at the 4 Nations Face-Off last February, when the U.S. reached overtime of the championship game before Connor McDavid won it for Canada on a goal no one could have stopped. He looks primed for a deep run.

I've also liked what I've seen from the Hughes brothers. Jack Hughes didn't have the best 4 Nations and is coming off an injury, but he's had some impactful shifts. For a smaller player (5-foot-11, 175 pounds), it might be good that he had some time off leading up to the Games.

As for Jack's brother, Quinn Hughes, who missed 4 Nations because of an injury, he comes as advertised. He controls games out there. It's easy to see why he's one of the two or three best defensemen on the planet.

Looking ahead, Team USA is on the right track. This isn't the NHL. It comes down to one-game showdowns now. You want to get better with every game. You have to get better with every game. They know that.

Peaking early is not the goal. Peaking later in the tournament is, and Team USA has taken the steps thus far to keep improving with every outing.