As we entered the last full weekend of February, the sports slate was still in the midst of Olympic fever. Back on US soil, America's favorite pastime kicked off the 2026 season over the weekend in the Deep South and Desert Southwest.
These are the headlines from a busy sports weekend:
Hockey Wins Gold
In an event some 46 years in the making, the United States overcame years of struggles on the world stage and used a Jack Hughes overtime winner to upend Canada and win the Gold Medal at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
Team Canada had an opportunity of its own when one of the NHL's leading goal scorers - Nathan MacKinnon - blasted the go-ahead goal into the side of the net on an open-look in the third period of a 1-1 deadlock.
As the game shifted to the overtime session, the US capitalized in a big way with less than two minutes left in the extra set. Zach Werenski swiped the puck from MacKinnon and flipped the puck across the ice to Hughes who ripped a shot through the five-hole on Canada net-minder Jordan Binnington to send the Red, White and Blue into the history books with a thrilling 2-1 victory.
The win ended a nearly half-century drought for the United States and garnered Team USA its third gold medal in Winter Games history. With the win, former Pittsburgh Penguins, and current New York Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan led the Red, White and Blue to its first medal of any kind in men's hockey since the 2010 squad took home the silver medal in Vancouver, British Columbia.
On the women's side, it was business as usual as the squad notched its second gold medal in the last three Olympic Games with a 2-1 overtime victory over Canada on Thursday evening. It was Megan Keller's even-strength goal in the extra set that proved to be the difference for the US.
Baseball Spring Training Begins
Back on American soil, the 2026 Major League Baseball season kicked off in earnest with Spring Training games taking place in the Cactus and Grapefruit Leagues.
Only five unbeaten teams remain through the opening weekend of action as the Washington Nationals - the lone Grapefruit League representative - are joined by the Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Guardians, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants as the only squads to remain unscathed through the first weekend of Spring Training.
The annual event which kicks off the season with games in Florida and Arizona also serves as a precursor to the 2026 World Baseball Classic which opens play in two weeks. Action begins in the World Baseball Classic on Wednesday, March 4 when Chinese Taipei tangles with Australia in the world famous Tokyo Dome.
In other baseball related news, the ultra-rare T-206 Honus Wagner tobacco card from 1909 recently sold for five million dollars at auction after being discovered in the family archives of Douglas and Dennis Shields. The card has been in the Shields family for more than a century.
USA Finishes Second in Medal Count, Most Golds in Winter Games History
While the Norwegian's cruised to 41 medals and their third straight award for most medals earned at the Winter Olympic Games, the United States followed with a sensational 33 medals which was good enough for second place on the medal table.
Behind a pair of gold medals in hockey, the US also earned a dozen gold medals in its two weeks in Italy. The 12 gold medals was the highest total for the US in Winter Olympic Games history.
The United States medal count high-water mark stands at 37 from its impressive performance in Vancouver which saw the Red, White and Blue take home the most medals of any country.