BILLINGS — Jake Sanderson and the United States men's hockey team won again Saturday at the Milan Cortina Olympics, claiming a 6-3 victory over Denmark at the Santagiulia Arena in Milan, Italy.
Team USA improved to 2-0 in Group C preliminary play two days after a 5-1 rout of Latvia in its Olympic opener. Sanderson, a Whitefish native and a defenseman for the Americans, registered three shots and a minus-2 rating in 14:10 of ice time. Denmark scored three goals on 23 shots.
Sanderson, who plays in the NHL for the Ottawa Senators, made a key defensive play to stymie a scoring chance in front of the net by Denmark's Alexander True early in the third period with the U.S. leading by a goal.
In two games so far at the Olympics, Sanderson has five total shots and is minus-2 with an average of 15:23 of ice time.
Team USA had six different goal scorers versus Denmark. Jack Eichel had a goal and an assist. Noah Hanifin was credited with the game-winning goal at 17:23 of the second period.
Team USA will play its final Group C game on Sunday versus Germany at 1:10 p.m. Mountain time. The playoff round begins next Tuesday. The gold medal game is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 22.
A two-time Olympian, the 23-year-old Sanderson was born in Whitefish in 2002 and competed in the Glacier Hockey Association. He later moved with his family to Calgary, Alberta, and played college hockey at the University of North Dakota. He was the No. 5 overall selection by Ottawa in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
Sanderson is a dual citizen of the United States and Canada. He has also played internationally for Team USA in the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, the World Junior Championships, the Ice Hockey World Championships, and the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off.
