Team USA's overtime victory over Canada in the men's hockey gold medal game attracted an average audience of 26 million viewers across NBC and Peacock platforms. The 2-1 win, capped by Jack Hughes' golden goal, became the most-watched sporting event in U.S. history with a pre-9 a.m. Eastern start time, according to Nielsen data.

NBC's coverage of the Milan-Cortina Olympics averaged 23.5 million viewers in the United States, making it the most-watched Winter Games since 2014. The network said this represents a 96% increase over the 2022 Beijing Games. The gold medal game peaked at nearly 35 million North American viewers when Hughes scored the decisive goal.

The women's hockey gold medal game earlier in the Olympics also drew strong viewership, averaging 5.3 million on USA Network and Peacock, with Megan Keller's overtime winner peaking at 7.7 million viewers. NBCUniversal's comprehensive coverage across multiple platforms and time slots contributed to the record-breaking audience numbers for both the men's and women's gold medal matches.