Game story
MILAN -- The U.S. women's hockey team shut out Canada 5-0 on Tuesday in a preliminary round matchup that could foreshadow the gold medal game at the Milan-Cortina Olympics.
The meeting marked the latest chapter in one of the sport's fiercest rivalries. Since women's hockey was added to the Olympic program in 1998, Canada has won five gold medals and the United States the other two. Tuesday's match was the 11th Olympic meeting between these two teams, with Canada having won seven out of the previous 10, though the Americans entered the tournament as the gold medal favorites.
Veteran player Caroline Harvey said about the rivalry, "They give us their best game always, and they come out relentless, so having a game plan and attack to counter that. It's hard, but they're our rivals for a reason. We love playing them."
The United States arrived unbeaten, outscoring opponents 15-1 in Group A. Tuesday's contest was their fourth and final game of the Group A preliminary round, while Canada was playing its third. The win over Canada was Team USA's third straight shutout in the tournament, expanding their shutout streak to 211 minutes, and Canada's first-ever shutout loss in the Olympics.
A major storyline heading into the game was the absence of Canada's star player and captain at the last three Olympics, Marie-Philip Poulin. Poulin was sidelined with an injury sustained in a 5-1 win over the Czech Republic the previous day. Tuesday's matchup was Canada's first Olympic game without Poulin since 2006.
From the beginning of the game, the American team demonstrated a creative and aggressive offense, scoring its first goal just four minutes into the first period. They then continued to score another goal in the first, two in the second, and one in the third. In addition, they showcased a complete defense that limited Canada's offensive progress.
Poulin's absence was felt by Canada, which could not seem to gain control of the puck against the aggressive U.S. team. In total, Canada only had 20 shots on goal in comparison to Team USA's 33. Canada's top line of Nurse, Fillier, and Watts only got two shots on goal.
Penalties also played a role in the outcome. Canada was assessed 10 penalty minutes, which the American women were able to capitalize on with a power-play goal from Kirsten Simms in the second period, her first career Olympic goal. Simms' goal underwent two reviews, one the result of a challenge by Canada for goalie review, which was lost and resulted in another power play for the Americans.
Brianne Jenner, Canada's captain in Poulin's absence, said, "I don’t think we did a great job managing the puck. We had a lot of opportunities that we kind of squandered ourselves and just didn't kind of take care of the details when they had their chances."
Along with the goal from Simms, three of the other U.S. goals were scored by first-time Olympians. Hannah Bilka scored two goals, and Laila Edwards scored her first Olympic goal in the third period. The U.S. roster is made up of eight first-time Olympians, six of whom have scored in Milan.
Veteran players also made key contributions. Abbey Murphy had a huge night with three assists and four drawn penalties, one of which led to a goal. Caroline Harvey added a goal and two assists to tie for the tournament lead with seven points. Captain Hilary Knight tied a U.S. Olympic scoring record with a first-period assist, giving her 32 total Olympic points (14 goals, 8 assists).
Another veteran player, forward Alex Carpenter, spoke about Team USA's upcoming schedule, saying, "Everyone in this tournament is a great team, we're going to have do to a good scout on them."
The dominant performance by the Americans puts them in the lead in Group A and will advance them to the quarterfinals to play Italy, which finished third in Group B.
At the end of the game, Canadian coach Troy Ryan said about Poulin, "She's irreplaceable. It changes a lot of things. I don't think that's the reason why we had the performance that we had tonight, but you just miss her everywhere. Your power play's a little less lethal, your penalty kill even at times, and then you just have the faceoff, winning those puck possession plays."
Canada will play against Finland on Thursday, a game that was rescheduled due to a norovirus outbreak. Every team from Group A will automatically make it to the quarterfinals. Canada's opponent will be determined by the results of the game against Finland. Ryan says that Poulin will be reassessed for her injuries, and they are hopeful that she will return by the end of the tournament.
