List of Olympic men ' s ice hockey players for the United States Men ' s ice hockey tournaments have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1920 . The men ' s tournament was introduced at the 1920 Summer Olympics , and permanently added to the Winter Olympic Games in 1924 . The United States has participated in 21 of 22 tournaments , sending 42 goaltender s and 271 skaters . For the first two tournaments , the United States sent club amateur teams with additional players from other squads . After sitting out the 1928 tournament , in 1932 they sent a team made up almost entirely of players attending college in the US . The early American teams were successful , winning three silvers and a bronze in the first five tournaments . In 1948 , controversy struck when the US sent two teams to the Olympics . Two competing bodies , the American Hockey Association and the Amateur Athletic Union , each claimed that their team had the right to represent the United States . The AAU players were amateur , while the AHA players were professionals . Despite Olympic regulations at the time forbidding professional players , the AAU had been expelled from the International Ice Hockey Federation the year before . As a compromise , the AHA team was permitted to compete , but they would be prohibited from qualifying for a medal . In 1960 , an unheralded American squad defeated the Canadian and Soviet squads on American soil en route to their first Olympic gold medal . Unfortunately , the next several years were not successful ; when the United States won silver in 1972 , it did so from the B Pool , becoming the first B Pool squad to medal in an Olympic tournament . In 1980 , Herb Brooks , the last man cut from the team that won gold in 1960 , was named coach , and selected a team of college hockey players . The Americans shocked the world by first upsetting the heavily favored Soviet team 4 - 3 , and then they defeated Finland for the gold medal . The " Miracle on Ice " , as the game against the Soviets came to be known , was later named as the greatest moment in international hockey history by the IIHF , and the story was later turned into two motion pictures , " Miracle on Ice " and " Miracle " . The Olympic Games were originally intended for amateur athletes , so the players of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) and other professional leagues were not allowed to compete . Many of Canada ' s top players were professional , so the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association ( CAHA ) pushed for the ability to use professional and amateur players . The International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) refused , and Canada withdrew from the 1972 and 1976 Olympics in protest . In 1986 , the IOC voted to allow all athletes to compete in Olympic Games , starting in 1988 . The NHL decided not to allow all players to participate in 1988 , 1992 or 1994 , because doing so would force the league to halt play during the Olympics . An agreement was reached in 1995 that allowed NHL players to compete in the Olympics , starting with the 1998 Games in Nagano , Japan . Since that time , the Americans have won two silver medals , losing both times to Canada in the gold medal game in North America ( 2002 in Salt Lake City and 2010 in Vancouver ) . National teams are co - ordinated by USA Hockey and players are chosen by the team ' s management staff . The United States has won two gold medals , eight silver medals and one bronze medal in men ' s ice hockey ; the Americans have won more silver medals than any other nation . Two players have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame , seven into the IIHF Hall of Fame and forty - five individuals into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame . In addition , two teams have been inducted into the US Hockey Hall of Fame and the United States Olympic Hall of Fame : the gold medal winning 1960 and 1980 teams . Two players — Chris Chelios and Keith Tkachuk — have played on four teams . According to the IOC database , 176 men have won medals ; ten players — Bill Cleary , Chris Drury , Herbert Drury , John Garrison , John Mayasich , Dick Meredith , Weldon Olson , Brian Rafalski , Richard Rodenheiser , and Frank Synott — have won two medals . Keith Tkachuk holds the record for most games played , having dressed for 23 games in 1992 , 1998 , 2002 , and 2006 . Herbert Drury leads American Olympians in goals , having scored 33 goals in 1920 and 1924 ( before assists were counted ) ; Bruce Cunliffe scored 23 points ( 17 goals and 6 assists ) in 1948 , and Bill Christian recorded 12 assists in 1960 and 1964 . Goaltenders . Reserve goaltenders . These goaltenders were named to the Olympic roster , but did not receive any ice time during games .