Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics (WFAC)

The men's ice hockey tournament at the in, , was the 18th Olympic Championship. Sweden won its first gold medal, becoming the sixth nation to ever win Olympic ice hockey gold. The tournament, held from 12 February to 27 February, was played at the in  and the  in. There was no women's tournament at the Olympics until 1998.

This was the first Olympics in which the National Hockey League (NHL) took a break (22 days, from 7 February to 1 March) allowing national teams to be constructed using the best possible talent from each country. Until 1994, only amateurs and players from professional leagues other than the NHL were allowed to play. The 1998 Olympic tournament therefore came to be known as the "Tournament of the Century". Unlike previous Olympics where athletes could choose five-star hotel accommodations, NHL players were required to stay in the Olympic Village like other athletes.

The Canadian team, which was nicknamed "The Dream Team" and lead by star players like and, were considered the favourites to win gold. The final was played between the favourites Canada (the 1991 world champions) and Sweden (the reigning world champions). Canada had been to the final game two years earlier, at the 1992 Olympics, only to lose 3–1 to the Soviet Union, and it was seeking its first gold medal since 1952. Sweden had prior to Lillehammer never won Olympic hockey gold and last time they came close was in 1964, when they grabbed the silver. An exciting gold medal game saw Sweden force overtime by tying the score with less than two minutes to go. After a scoreless overtime, the winner was determined by a shootout. The first five rounds saw two players for each side make their penalty shots ( and for Canada and  and  for Sweden), leaving the last shooter for each side to determine who would win Olympic gold. The 20-year old Forsberg then moved in on Canadian goalie, moved left to his forehand and then slid the puck to his backhand. With one hand on the stick and the goalie sliding toward Forsberg, the player calmly slid the puck into the open side of the net. It was the most daring, exciting shootout goal in Olympic history, and after made a save on  at the other end, Sweden had claimed its first ever Olympic gold.

In the bronze medal game, Finland strengthened their position as one of the big six nations by defeating the Soviet Union 4–0.