The Olympic Village is the place to be before and after hockey games.
Just take Thursday. Early in the afternoon the day after the U.S. men’s hockey team beat Sweden in the quarterfinals, U.S. players Matthew Tkachuk, Zach Werenski and Connor Hellebuyck hopped on Lime scooters to head to lunch — only to run into Sweden’s Lucas Raymond and Germany’s Tim Stützle, whose team lost to Slovakia in the quarters, waiting with long faces for Ubers so they could head to the airport for return flights to North America.
An awkward meeting, or no?
“I wouldn’t say it’s weird,” Tkachuk said. “I think we obviously expected to be in the semifinals, and then we’re dealt a really tough task with Sweden, and one of us had to go home. And fortunately for us, we’re still here, but I would have a hard time wrapping my head around it if we were heading home today. It’s very unfortunate for them, because they’re a hell of a team and one of the best in the world. They probably deserve to be in the semifinals. So do we.”
Read more about life for NHL stars in the Olympic Village in Milan below.