Hilary Knight couldn’t think of a better way to end the Beijing Games women’s hockey tournament than with a rematch between the US and — who else? — Canada for the gold medal.
The title will be clinched between the world’s two great powers on Thursday, after an Olympic event criticised for lacking equity due to too many lopsided scores — and big on predictability with the US and Canada once again dominating. It will be the latest chapter in a bitter rivalry that dates back to the Americans’ victory over Canada at the 1998 Nagano Games, the first to feature women’s hockey.
Canada advanced earlier in the day when it scored five first-period goals in 3:24, an Olympic record, in a 10-3 triumph over Switzerland.
The United States and Canada will compete for gold for the sixth time in seven Olympics. The only exception was Canada’s victory over Sweden at the 2006 Turin Games, after the Swedes eliminated the Americans in the semifinals.
While the United States is the incumbent Olympic champion after a 3-2 shootout victory in Pyeongchang in 2018, Canada is considered the favourite in Beijing. The Canadians have swept through the competition with a 6-0 record, outscoring opponents 54-8, including a 4-2 victory over the United States in the preliminary round finals last week.
Captain Marie-Philip Poulin of Canada, who scored two goals against the Swiss, said it didn’t matter who her team faced in the final.
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