The United States women’s ice hockey team concluded its stellar Olympic competition by beating rival Canada in overtime to win the gold medal. With the tying goal late in the third period by captain Hilary Knight, the hungry American team secured the victory after a scrappy goal by Megan Keller just over four minutes into overtime.
The gold medal game was a rematch for the two teams, who had played on Tuesday, Feb. 10, with the USA shutting Canada out for the first time in Olympic history by a score of 5-0.
Canada struck first on Thursday, though, as Kristin O’Neill scored their only goal of the game early in the first period. The Canadians absolutely outplayed the Americans during the first two periods, being quicker and more intense on offense. It wasn’t until the third period that the USA settled in as they battled every shift in an effort to tie the game.
The low-scoring game was an outlier in the U.S.’s Olympic play this year in Milan. Prior to their final matchup, the USA had scored five or more goals in each game. The Americans also upheld a staggeringly low goals against count, with goaltender Aerin Frankel only conceding a single goal in the opening game against Czechia. The Canadians ended the USA’s record-breaking five consecutive shutouts with O’Neill’s goal, but Frankel defended her dominance between the pipes all tournament.
Notre Dame played a role in the impressive victory, with head coach John Wroblewski ‘03 and assistant coach Josh Sciba ‘07 leading the team to the top of the podium. Wroblewski skated for four seasons with Notre Dame hockey, playing from 1999 to 2003. Sciba came later, taking the ice for the Irish from 2003 to 2007, alongside current Irish boss Brock Sheahan. Both men have held their positions since 2022, the year the women’s team brought home the silver medal in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The two men combined their collegiate experience with professional expertise, traveling to Milan to bring the gold back home to the United States.
