Teemu Selänne goes off on officials in Canada-Finland semifinal

Finnish legend Teemu Selänne had plenty to say about the referees in Friday’s semifinal between Canada and his home country.

With just over two minutes left in regulation and the score tied 2-2, defenseman Niko Mikkola was penalized for striking Nathan MacKinnon in the face with his stick. Canada capitalized on the ensuing power play to score the game-winning goal. According to Selänne, there shouldn’t have been a penalty on the play, and he didn’t hold back in expressing his frustration after the match.

“Beating greatest hockey country in the world and Canadian referees same night is impossible I guess… absolutely embarrassing penalty 90 seconds to go in Olympic semifinal.. what a joke”

It’s fair to say the Finns have plenty to be frustrated about themselves. They had built a 2-0 lead in the second period before Canada cut the deficit in half with a goal from Sam Reinhart and later tied it thanks to a booming shot from Shea Theodore in the middle of the third period.

That goal drew criticism on its own as many observers wondered if Finland should have challenged the play for goalie interference.

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Ultimately, it was MacKinnon who scored the decisive goal with just 35.2 seconds remaining in regulation. Canada moves on to the gold-medal game at the 2026 Winter Olympics, set for Sunday, with a showdown against the winner of Slovakia vs. Team USA.