Never had the United States been dominated like this so early in a gold medal game — and never had it dug so deep to climb back just to give itself a chance.
For all the talk about the lack of parity in women’s hockey — about how the gulf between the North American juggernauts and the rest of the world remains wide — the Canadians, at least for this tournament, were in a league of their own, and they showed it in the first half of Thursday’s showdown. They had entered the game with an Olympic-record 56 goals, with seven of the top scorers in the tournament, and on Thursday, they took a three-goal lead by the middle of the second period. Leading the way was star Marie-Philip Poulin, who had scored two stunning goals in the first two periods, including a rebound putback with 11 minutes remaining in the second period to spot her team the three-goal lead.
There were so many other stars the Americans couldn’t counter — Sarah Nurse started the scoring with a goal in the first period to push her gaudy point total for these Games to 17.
The U.S. could not get enough quality looks on net, and its defense could not adjust to the speed and crisp passing by the Canadians early.
The Americans fought tooth and nail to get back in it, starting their attempted rally while Canada was on the power play. That’s when Hilary Knight, making a U.S. Olympic record 22nd appearance, pulled her team within 3-1 with a shorthanded goal. The Americans who finished with 40 shots, controlled the pace early in the third behind forward Alex Carpenter, who hit the post on a shot, then had a breakaway chance before Canada goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens made a save on a backhand. The U.S. couldn’t capitalize on a power play later in the period.
As they continued to make a frantic push in the period, the U.S. pulled its goaltender with just over three minutes left to put an extra attacker on the ice.
After a penalty against Canada in the final minute, there were two extra attackers — and Amanda Kessel scored with 12 seconds left. But there simply wasn’t enough time to complete the comeback. American players on the bench continued to crank their necks up at the scoreboard clock, watching as the seconds ticked down on their dreams of winning a second consecutive gold medal.
Stubbs reported from Beijing. Janes reported from Washington. Find highlights and analysis below.
Canada defeats United States, 3-2, in gold medal game
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Despite a late push that included several grade-A scoring chances in the third period and a late goal from Amanda Kessel with an empty net, the United States could not overcome an early three-goal deficit and fell to Canada, 3-2, in the gold medal game. The U.S. will settle for silver for the fourth time in the seven Olympics since women’s hockey became an Olympic sport in 1998.
The Americans, who lost star scorer Brianna Decker to injury in the first period of the Olympic tournament, simply did not have enough firepower to overcome the Canadian juggernaut, which charged through these Olympics. Canadian captain Marie-Philip Poulin victimized the Americans on the biggest stage yet again, scoring two of her team’s three goals to give her seven all-time in gold medal games. Her team dominated faceoffs all night, winning one in the first period that led to Canada’s first goal when Natalie Spooner buried a puck sent her way
American star Hilary Knight, who broke the record for most Olympic appearances in U.S. women’s hockey history when she took the ice Thursday, scored her team’s first goal. It came short-handed. Though the Americans struggled to control the puck in the first period, they slowly settled into a more consistent offensive attack by the time the third period began, but were unable to capitalize enough to overcome their hole.
1:13 a.m.
Roman Stubbs: The U.S. has gone 0-for-3 on their power play opportunities today and desperately needed a score there in the middle of the third period to trim this deficit to a goal. With just over five minutes left, some of the Americans players on the bench keep looking up at the clock above the ice as the seconds dwindle down on their gold medal defense.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
1:02 a.m.
Roman Stubbs: The Americans are controlling the pace so far in the third and now have ten more shots on goal than their rivals. Alex Carpenter hit the post on shot, then had a breakaway chance before Ann-Renée Desbiens made a clutch save on a backhand. Carpenter is certainly not taking the moment for granted: after helping the Americans earn a silver in Sochi, she was one of the final cuts before PyeongChang and spent several years playing professionally here in China while she worked her way back with the national team. She’s been really good so far in this third.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
12:43 a.m.
Roman Stubbs: Hilary Knight roared at the U.S. bench after she scored a shorthanded goal to make it 3-1 late in the second period, and that seems to have sparked her teammates a bit. U.S. players banged their sticks and cheered loudly for their four teammates as they killed off the rest of the Canadian power play, every sound amplified in a nearly empty arena. Expect the Americans to make a desperate push in the third period after Knight’s 12th Olympic goal, which moves her to third in U.S. Olympic history.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
Team USA trails, 3-1, after two periods
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Although the second period did not represent a total reversal of fortunes for the United States, it did see the Americans outshoot the Canadians and score their first goal, a shorthanded putback from Hilary Knight late in the period. But Canada’s captain, Marie-Philip Poulin, is outscoring the U.S. single-handedly, and an American comeback would be as unprecedented as Canada’s early dominance: the three-goal lead it built before Knight’s goal was the first three-goal lead either of these teams has had in six Olympic gold medal matchups.
Hilary Knight gets the United States on the board
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Down a skater against a powerful Canadian power play unit, American Hannah Brandt found a way to control a puck at the top of her defensive zone and send it to veteran Hilary Knight in a two-on-one rush. Knight fired at Team Canada goalie Ann-Renée Desbiens, who couldn’t control the rebound. Knight followed her shot and found the puck at the doorstep. She sent it over the goal line for a second-chance goal that pulls the Americans with two as the second period winds down.
12:25 a.m.
Roman Stubbs: As one would expect, it’s starting to get a little chippy — Brianne Jenner and Abbey Murphy just exchanged words behind Canada’s net after a stoppage in play — and frustration is mounting for the Americans. Marie-Philip Poulin’s second goal of the game makes it 3-0 midway through the second, and it comes on Canada’s 16th shot of the game. The Americans have 17, but in what has been a trend all tournament, they’re struggling to get high quality looks. They entered the game with 306 shots, way more than any other team, but have scored 28 goals in six games. Pucks not getting through. Kendall Coyne Schofield had a slap shot blocked early in the second, and Hannah Brandt had another wrister from the right circle that was batted down.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
Canada seizes control with a 3-0 lead
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Just as the United States seemed to be finding its footing offensively, controlling the puck more and generating more frequent — if not necessarily more dangerous — chances, Canada turned a transition opportunity into its third goal. Marie-Philip Poulin was the one to tap it home for her second of the game, seventh in Olympic gold medal games all-time. Not since 1998 has one of these teams scored more than three goals against the other in a gold medal game, which means not only are the Canadians on the verge of an unprecedented outburst, but also that the Americans have a historically massive hill to climb.
Canada leads, 2-0, after the first
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The first period of the quadrennial Olympic showdown between the North American rivals was rather one-sided as the Canadians scored two goals and had a third waived off as they controlled the puck for much of the period. Though both teams registered 11 shots, the Canadians seemed to pepper American goalie Alex Cavallini with formidable frequency as the U.S. did its best to generate a few strong chances here and there.
After the period, U.S. captain Kendall Coyne-Schofield told NBC that her team needs to put more pucks on net and create more traffic in front of Canada’s goal if they are to chip away at this deficit and turn the gold medal game into the kind of one-goal nail-biter these teams are used to playing.
11:58 p.m.
Roman Stubbs: As is customary at the end of each period, American Hilary Knight — who is appearing in a record 22d Olympic game today — waited near the door to the locker room at the end of the first to give each of her teammates an encouraging fist bump. Down 2-0, the Americans are in a deep hole. The U.S. came up with a really important penalty kill near the end of the second period, but its defense has struggled to adjust to Canada’s speed and has been spread out by crisp passing. Marie-Philip Poulin’s goal came after Megan Keller failed to clear a puck — Poulin chased it down, weaved between defenders and then had a wrister deflect off defender Savannah Harmon and past Alex Cavallini to make it 2-0. The U.S. will need to be much better in their back-end if it is going to climb back into the game.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
Canada’s women’s hockey team ‘is a different animal,’ and it’s mauling everything in its path
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BEIJING — Nine minutes 21 seconds into its semifinal game against Canada on Monday, Switzerland’s women’s hockey team changed goalies. It seemed as much an act of mercy as of ambition. Out went Andrea Braendli, who was wearing four Canadian goals, all of them getting past her in a dizzying span of 125 seconds of the first period. In came Saskia Maurer, who would be wearing a fifth goal exactly 79 seconds after entering, plus another five before it was all over.
News flash: The goalie wasn’t the problem.
Team Canada has done this to just about every opponent — and nearly every poor soul who steps between the pipes to face down its barrage of flying pucks — in what has been a relentless and historic march through the Olympic women’s hockey tournament.
Including Monday’s 10-3 semifinal win — which included goals by nine players and assists from 11 — the Canadians have trounced their opponents in this tournament by a cumulative score of 54-8, with the 54 goals setting a record for a single Olympics.
“You can see it on the scoresheet — we have offense coming from everywhere. We have offense coming from all four lines and all seven on defense. We’re just so deep,” said forward Sarah Nurse. “It’s the best team I’ve ever been on.”
Canada takes a 2-0 lead late in the first
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In an unsurprising turn of events, given the way Canada has controlled the puck in the first period, Canadian captain Marie-Philip Poulin took advantage of a puck the Americans could not clear and buried a shot past Alex Cavallini to double her team’s lead. Poulin has been unthinkably clutch in her Olympic career, and that goal was her sixth in gold medal games alone. Cavallini allowed two goals in her first three starts of these Olympics. She has allowed two in the first 17 minutes of the final.
11:34 p.m.
Roman Stubbs: Sarah Nurse had been the player offsides on Canada’s nullified goal, but she scored less than a minute later. Canada has completely dictated the pace early. After the Canadians were outshot 53-27 in the first meeting of these teams in the prelims, Nurse said, “We really want to focus on quality shots versus quantity.” They’ve got both early — seven shots to the American’s two — including Nurse’s goal.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
Sarah Nurse gives Canada a 1-0 lead
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Not a minute after referees waived off what appeared to be Canada’s first goal, the red-sweatered squad scored one that would stand up. After Canada won a faceoff in the Americans’ defensive zone, Sarah Nurse found herself with the puck and plenty of room in front of Alex Cavallini’s net. She didn’t miss. The goal was Nurse’s fifth of the Olympic tournament, and her 17 points lead all scorers. Canada leads 1-0.
11:19 p.m.
Roman Stubbs: All three U.S. goalies have played in this tournament, and while Coach Joel Johnson has kept his decision-making process close to the vest, he’s going with the hot-hand today in Alex Cavallini after a 25-save performance in the semifinal win against Finland. “It doesn’t matter who is our opponent, we’re fighting for a gold medal here,” she said afterward, but it will matter today: her rivals will present a formidable offensive challenge. Canada has seven of the top scorers in the tournament, led by Sarah Nurse (16 points). It’s a huge opportunity for Cavallini, who didn’t play in PyeongChang and thought about walking away from the sport, only to work her way back to this stage. Cavallini is backed up today by Maddie Rooney, the 2018 gold medal shootout hero who started the first meeting between these teams in the preliminary round, a 4-2 Canada win.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
11:01 p.m.
Roman Stubbs: Only a few hundred spectators are expected inside Wukesong Sports Centre today, and U.S. star Brianna Decker will again be among them. After suffering a gruesome leg injury in the first period of the opener that ended her tournament, Decker opted to stay back in Beijing and has been assisting the team’s coaching staff and players, who have affectionately been calling her “Coach Decks.” On the ice, the Americans have done their best to compensate for her absence — Abby Roque has moved to center full-time along with Kelly Pannek and Jesse Compher. They’ve helped bolster a balanced lineup — 13 players have scored goals over the course of the tournament, with 18 tallying a point — and they’ll need all hands on deck again today against their rivals.
Roman Stubbs, Sports reporter
