Team USA beat Czechia while Canada defeated Switzerland in the semifinals of the 2023 women’s World Championship. One of hockey’s greatest rivalries is renewed on Sunday.
It’s the best rivalry in hockey, and another installment is on the way after Canada and USA punched their tickets to the women’s World Championship gold medal game.
USA opened the day by putting in a dominant performance against Czechia. After only beating Germany 3-0 in the quarterfinal, the American offense exploded in a 9-1 win over Czechia. Amanda Kessel was named player of the game in the semifinal after recording two goals and an assist, including a highlight-reel tally where she batted the puck out of the air to score. She says the USA has a lot to prove after recent World Championship and Olympic Games losses to Canada.
USA will look to dethrone Canada, who beat Switzerland 5-1 on the heels of a Sarah Fillier hat trick and enter the gold medal game as back-to-back reigning World Champions.
“There’s a lot (to prove) – it hasn’t really gone our way lately, and it all comes down to heart and battle,” Amanda Kessel said of facing Canada. “It’s been going their way, so I think they have the confidence. But I have the confidence in our team, and I know that we have it in the room to win.”
On the Canadian side, veteran Natalie Spooner, who recorded three assists in the semifinal win over Switzerland, said Team Canada is excited to play their American rivals again.
“They’re the games we want to play, and we get up for them just as much as they get excited for them, too,” she said. “We’re excited to play them again for the gold medal game.”
In the preliminary round, Canada took a 3-1 lead into the final two minutes of play before the USA mounted a memorable comeback. The tying goal with fewer than 10 seconds remaining in the game came off the stick of Amanda Kessel. Although USA lost in a shootout, Kessel believes her team is holding on to the momentum of that comeback.
«That’s huge for our team, just showing the game’s never over until it’s over,” said Kessel.
“That gave us a lot of confidence and momentum. I don’t even think that we played our best that game. We have a lot more in the tank, and the team is ready to go.”
It’s that confidence Kessel spoke of that is permeating USA’s lineup, from veteran leaders to emerging stars like Caroline Harvey. Harvey is tied for the tournament lead in points and is the top scorer from Group A with 12 points in 6 games. Coming off a national title in her rookie season with Wisconsin, Harvey was named one of USA’s top three players at the tournament. The 20-year-old is ready for a rematch with Canada and will be counted upon heavily for the USA at both ends of the rink.
“Obviously, it’s a battle with Canada,” said Harvey. “They’re a very hard team to play against, but we’re going out with the same mindset, the same mindset we had today. We’re just going to take it to them and give them our best shot, and I think we’re going to come out on top tomorrow.”
According to Harvey, Team USA “flipped the script” in their semifinal against Czechia, and she feels they’re ready to challenge and beat Canada. Harvey, Kessel and the rest of Team USA will not only have to beat Canada’s stars on the ice, but they’ll also need to overcome the crowd in Brampton, Ont. as well. USA enters with confidence, and Canada enters with excitement in a winner-takes-gold game.
“It’s going to be super physical, fast, skilled,” said Canada’s Sarah Fillier of again playing Team USA. “It’s not hard to get up for this game, and I’m sure they’re saying the same thing over there. We’re super excited to play for a gold medal in front of Brampton.
SOURCE: THEHOCKEYNEWS