Timo and Jack Help Lead Teams to Wins | NOTEBOOK

The 2026 Winter Olympic Games are underway in Italy and several Devils are taking part, representing their countries in Men’s Ice Hockey: Nico Hischier, Timo Meier and Jonas Siegenthaler (Switzerland), Jack Hughes (USA), Jesper Bratt and Jacob Markstrom (Sweden) and Simon Nemec (Slovakia).

The tournament begins Wednesday, Feb. 11 and concludes with the Gold Medal Game on Sunday, Feb. 22.

Stay tuned here for daily updates, recaps, videos and more on the Devils players and how they’re performing for their countries.

Feb. 12 Games

USA 5, Latvia 1

Devils center Jack Hughes recorded two assists in the United States' 5-1 victory over Latvia to open tournament play. He set up Brock Nelson for the game-winning goal in the second period and later initiated a play with his brother, Quinn Hughes, that led to Nelson's second tally. Hughes finished with a plus-2 rating in 11:14 of ice time.

Brock Nelson scored twice for the Americans, while Auston Matthews, Brady Tkachuk, and Tage Thompson also found the back of the net. Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck made 16 saves in the win.

Switzerland 4, France 0

Devils forward Timo Meier scored two goals in the third period to seal Switzerland's 4-0 victory over France in their tournament opener. He finished with a plus-3 rating and fired four shots on goal, while captain Nico Hischier and defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler helped shut down the French offense.

Damien Riat and J.J. Moser scored the opening goals for the Swiss. Goaltender Leonardo Genoni made 27 saves to earn the shutout.

Feb. 11 Games

Slovakia 4, Finland 1

Devils defenseman Simon Nemec logged a team-high 24:56 minutes of ice time and picked up an assist as his Slovakians defeated Finland, 4-1. He has also had four shots while shouldering the heavy workload.

Juraj Slafkovksy had two goals while Adam Ruzicka and Dalibor Dvorsky added tallies.

Sweden 5, Italy 2

Devils forward Jesper Bratt notched an assist in Sweden's 5-2 victory against Italy to open tournament play. He had three shots in 16:36 minutes of ice time. Goalie Jacob Markstrom backed up for the Swedes.

Gabriel Landeskog, Gustav Forsling, William Nylander, Mika Zibanejad and Victor Hedman scored for Sweden.

Pre-Tournament Roundup

10 TAKEAWAYS: OLYMPIC SEND OFF

The NHL has officially hit pause and the hockey world’s attention shifts to Milan for the next couple of weeks. While some of the league’s biggest stars are heading overseas for best-on-best Olympic competition, others (myself included!) are packing their bags for a different kind of trip, chasing some sun, grabbing a little relaxation, loading up on vitamin D, and resetting before the final stretch of the NHL season.

It’s definitely a little strange to have such a long break in February, but it’s the trade-off that comes with Olympic hockey. The players not participating will be back in action sooner than it feels, teams are allowed to start holding practices again on February 18, though some rosters will still be missing their Olympians. It’ll create a bit of a mini training camp vibe around the league. But before we start thinking about the stretch run, this is a good moment for everyone, players and fans alike, to take a breath and enjoy the break.

Full story here.