How to watch 2014 Winter Olympic hockey online, TV schedule and more

Men’s hockey gets serious on Friday. The semifinal round starts with what should be two outstanding games, including another showdown with old rivals Canada and the United States.

The first game starts at 7 a.m. ET, when Sweden take on Finland live on NBCSN. The Finns got here by placing second in their group and crushing Russia’s medal dreams in the quarterfinals, defeating the home nation 3-1. They took the bronze medal in Vancouver and are looking to score bigger this time around. Sweden cruised to an easy win in their group and had no problem in the quarterfinal, taking care of Slovenia, 5-0. They won the gold in Turin 2006 but had a disappointing run in Vancouver, where they finishing in fifth place.

That game is an appetizer to the one everyone is looking forward to, when the Canadians and Americans clash again. That game starts at noon and will be shown on NBCSN. The two teams had a memorable battle for the gold in Vancouver, with Canada coming out on top in an overtime win. The defending gold medalists didn’t get here unscathed, though, struggling with Latvia in the quarterfinal before eking out a 2-1 win.

Team USA breezed through group play, including a memorable shootout win over Russia before dismantling the Czech Republic, 5-2, to advance to the semis. The Americans have their sights set on their first gold medal since the Miracle on Ice in 1980, but first have to get past their not-so-friendly neighbors to the north.