Canadian hockey players have a history of coming through in the clutch
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Nathan MacKinnon added his name to the long list of clutch goals in Canadian hockey history with a late power play winner in the semifinal of the Milan Cortina Olympics as the Canadians rallied past Finland 3-2.
Here is a look at some of the biggest goals scored by Canada’s men’s and women’s hockey teams in major international tournaments:
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Paul Henderson — 1972 Summit Series
Henderson’s late third-period goal on Vladislav Tretiak in Game 8 of the 1972 Summit Series in Moscow secured a 6-5 win over the Soviet Union, clinching the series in what has become a nation-defining moment for Canada.
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Darryl Sittler — 1976 Canada Cup
Sittler’s late goal on goaltender Vladimír Dzurilla in the 1976 Canada Cup final gave Canada a 5-4 win over Czechoslovakia, clinching the title. Sittler collected the puck at centre ice and beat a Czech defender before beating a sprawling Dzurilla to the delight of the Montreal Forum crowd.
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Mike Bossy — 1984 Canada Cup
Bossy tipped home the overtime game-winner in the semifinal at Calgary’s Saddledome after Paul Coffey broke up a 2-on-1, securing Canada’s 4-3 win over the Soviet Union. Canada went on to sweep Sweden in the best-of-three final.
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Mario Lemieux — 1987 Canada Cup
Lemieux scored the winner with 1:26 remaining in regulation of Game 3 of the 1987 Canada Cup final after Wayne Gretzky set him up, securing Canada’s 6-5 victory over the Soviet Union at Hamilton’s Copps Coliseum. Lemieux also scored in double-overtime of Game 2, completing a hat trick, with Gretzky and Larry Murphy drawing assists.
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Sidney Crosby — 2010 Vancouver Olympics
Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime, converting a feed from Jarome Iginla and beating in-form American goaltender Ryan Miller to secure Canada’s 3-2 win over the United States. The Americans had tied the game on Zach Parise’s goal with 25 seconds left in regulation.
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Marie-Philip Poulin — 2014 Sochi Olympics
Poulin led the charge in Canada’s 3-2 overtime win over the United States in the 2014 women’s Olympic final. Down 2-0 with less than four minutes remaining, Poulin scored the tying goal in the final minute after American Kelli Stack hit the post with Canada’s goaltender pulled. Poulin completed the comeback in overtime with a shot past U.S. goaltender Jessie Vetter.
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Marie-Philip Poulin — 2021 women’s world championship
Poulin scored in overtime in the gold-medal game in Calgary as Canada came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the U.S. 3-2 and end the Americans’ run of five straight women’s world championship titles. Poulin’s shot over Nicole Hensley bounced out of the net so quickly that play resumed before the scorekeeper signalled a goal.
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Danielle Serdachny — 2024 women’s world championship
Serdachny scored on a power play in overtime as Canada defeated the U.S. 6-5 in a back-and-forth tournament final in Utica, N.Y. Canada’s victory on American soil was its third world title in four championships and came a year after the Americans beat Canada 6-3 in the final in Brampton, Ont.
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Connor McDavid — 2025 4 Nations Face-Off
After his team survived some nervous minutes in the extra period, McDavid scored the overtime goal as Canada edged the United States 3-2 in the 4 Nations Face-Off final in Boston.
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Mitch Marner — 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics
The top-seeded Canadians found themselves in a 3-2 deficit before Nick Suzuki sent the game to overtime with 3:27 left in regulation. Just 1:22 into 3-on-3 overtime play, Marner stickhandled his way through three Czechs before putting a backhand past Lukas Dostal to give Canadian fans a big sigh of relief and a ticket to the semifinals.
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Nathan MacKinnon — 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics
Canada trailed 2-0 before clawing back to level the semifinal, setting the stage for late drama. With the Canadians on a power play and pressing in the final minute, MacKinnon ripped home the winner with 35.2 seconds left to seal a 3-2 comeback win over Finland and punch Canada’s ticket to the gold-medal game.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 20, 2026.