Olympic hockey preview: Auston Matthews and William Nylander meet in quarterfinals, Canada takes on Czech Republic

It is somewhat shocking to see two of these teams in the quarter-finals as an argument could have easily been made for both teams to finish in the top four, but it shows how important goal difference is in a tournament like this. Despite Sweden, Slovakia and Finland all finishing on the same record, it came down to goal difference between each of the three teams that drew.

Slovakia defeated Finland 4–1 and lost 5–3 to Sweden, giving them a goal differential of plus-1. Finland lost 4–1 to Slovakia, but defeated Sweden 4–1, leveling the score. And Sweden beat Slovakia 5-3, but lost 4-1 to Finland, leaving the goal difference minus-1 and a bye to the quarter-finals. Of course, they made quick work of it after beating Latvia 5-1 in the play-off, but they now face a match against the United States, by far the toughest match of the three teams, as Finland faces Switzerland and Slovakia faces Germany.

Nylander is fourth on his team with two goals and four points in four games, while Ekman-Larsson has been used sparingly by his team and is without a point in four games. Matthews, meanwhile, shares the team lead in scoring with Matthew Tkachuk, both of whom have five points in three games.

While the Swedish tournament has been disappointing from a seeding perspective, they will undoubtedly show up to play an American team that has yet to lose a game in the tournament. The United States benefited from the easiest pool, with Germany, Denmark and Latvia completing their divisional matches, so it will be a good test for both teams who both have something to prove.

Canada will take on the Czech Republic at 10:40 AM EST, while Sweden and the US will face off at 3:40 PM EST.

PRESENTED BY DAILY FACEOFF OLYMPIC COVERAGE