Mens Hockey Olympics: Fans furious after NBC delays Canada vs Finland semifinal coverage as Sidney Crosby sidelined with injury

Winter Olympics fans woke up early on Friday ready to watch one of the biggest games of the 2026 Milano Cortina Games. But many were shocked when they could not see the start of the Canada vs Finland men’s hockey semifinal on regular TV. The game began at 10:40 a.m. Eastern Time. Instead of airing live on cable, the opening part of the matchup was available only on Peacock. USA Network, which is owned by NBCUniversal, showed the women’s speed skating 1500m during that time. NBC later scheduled delayed coverage of the hockey game at 11:50 a.m. ET on USA Network.Fans quickly shared their anger online. Many said they felt frustrated that such a major semifinal was not shown live on television. The matchup featured top-seeded Canada and defending 2022 Olympic champion Finland, making the decision even more surprising for viewers across the United States.The semifinal was already a huge story before the broadcast issue. Canada entered the game as the No. 1 seed, while Finland came in as the defending gold medalist from the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.Both teams fought hard in the quarterfinals earlier in the week. Finland edged Switzerland 3-2 in overtime. Canada also needed extra time to beat Czechia 4-3. Those close wins set up what many believed would be one of the best hockey games of the tournament.However, Canada had to prepare without its captain, Sidney Crosby. The veteran forward suffered a lower-body injury during Wednesday’s quarterfinal and was ruled out of the semifinal. His absence was another major talking point heading into Friday’s game.Still, much of the online reaction focused on the broadcast choice. Fans took to X to express how they felt.One fan wrote, “Not having this Canada-Finland hockey game on a dedicated tv channel is infuriating to me.”Another posted, “Absolutely wild the Canada Finland semi final game isn’t on tv right now.”A different viewer added, “Why is my USA channel playing speed skating??? All your stars yet I have to have peacock to watch???”One more comment read, “Everywhere I look, I see that USA Network is supposed to be broadcasting the CAN/FIN hockey semifinal. Yet — they aren’t.”For many hockey fans, the issue was not about streaming itself. It was about missing the first hour of a major Olympic semifinal on traditional television. With two strong teams on the ice and a place in the gold medal game at stake, viewers expected full live coverage from the opening puck drop.