The average live audience of 18.6 million viewers on NBC and Peacock between 8:15 a.m.-11 a.m. ET marked the second-highest viewership for a hockey game on NBC, trailing only the 2010 gold medal matchup between these same teams that drew 27.6 million viewers.
Jack Hughes' overtime winner gave the U.S. their first men's Olympic hockey gold medal since the 1980 "Miracle on Ice," sixteen years after Sidney Crosby's golden goal for Canada. The women's gold medal game also drew strong ratings with 5.3 million viewers, making it the most-watched women's hockey game on record.