Team Canada was sailing smoothly on their way to defend their men’s ice hockey gold. Until one moment during their game against France shook everything up.

Late in the third period, French player Pierre Crinon delivered a hard hit on Nathan MacKinnon, which sent him sprawling. Tom Wilson, who is known for his physical edge, didn’t hesitate. He skated straight towards Crinon. Gloves came off, which was followed by a fight. But looks like Wilson got out of this fight just fine.

The IIHF and NHL disciplinary committee reviewed the incident but decided no further punishment was necessary. NFL insider Pierre LeBrun posted on X,

“As per the rule book here there is no automatic suspension for fighting. But if the joint NHL-IIHF disciplinary committee saw something that it wanted to address, it could have. This was not the case in this instance. Wilson will get nothing further.”

However, players who drop their gloves were penalized and ejected from the game immediately. Both Wilson and Crinon received the standard penalties: a two-minute roughing penalty, a five-minute major for fighting, and a game misconduct, which forced them out of the match.

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Unbothered with all this drama, Wilson still achieved a rare feat: a Gordie Howe hat trick that means a goal, an assist, and a fight all in the same game.

Even though Wilson is keeping Canada’s hopes alive by being able to play in the next game, the shadow of a prior incident still looms.

Tom Wilson’s collision sends Fiala to the hospital

Just two days earlier, in Switzerland’s game against Canada on February 13, Swiss forward Kevin Fiala was involved in a collision with Tom Wilson near the boards. Fiala, trying to make a play, backed into Wilson. Their legs tangled, and both fell awkwardly to the ice with Wilson’s weight landing on Fiala’s left leg. The result was serious enough that Fiala couldn’t skate off on his own and had to be stretchered off with medical personnel attending.

He was taken to the hospital for surgery. Soon after, the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation confirmed the severity of the injury. “Kevin Fiala was injured in the second group game against Canada and will miss the rest of the Olympic tournament,” the federation said. Some reports even suggested the injury could end his NHL season once he returns home.

Despite the seriousness of the collision, no penalty was called. Officials described it as accidental and unlucky, with no intent to harm. Swiss center Nico Hischier said, “It’s an unfortunate play. He got tangled up there and fell, twisted his leg, but there’s no intention for sure. It’s just an unfortunate play.”

Even Wilson himself expressed his concern. “At this point, it’s the Olympic games, and I feel terribly. He may not be able to keep playing. Just sending his family and him my best,” he said. “You never want to see a guy go down in a tournament like this, especially. It sucks for the country and their team. I’m just wishing him a quick recovery.” But at the same time, Wilson’s history shows he is no stranger to such situations.

In March 2024, he was suspended for six games for high-sticking Noah Gregor. In March 2021, he received a seven-game ban for boarding Brandon Carlo. In the 2018 preseason, he was suspended for 20 games for an illegal check to Oskar Sundqvist. Later, it was reduced to 14 on appeal. He also had a three-game playoff suspension in 2018 for hitting Zach Aston-Reese, along with shorter bans in 2017 for boarding and interference. So, yes, his past shows he knows how to bounce back from disciplinary actions.