Shall I put on my sports blogger cap again?? Honestly, I went to bed early last night because the a–hole kitten is still disrupting my sleep patterns and making me wake up several times every night to pay attention to him. So I didn’t watch the women’s hockey final at the PyeongChang Olympics. For what feels like the millionth time, the women’s gold medal match was Canada versus the United States. Team USA ladies hadn’t won gold in hockey since 1998. Team Canada ladies have won gold in the past FOUR Winter Olympics. I don’t think either side expected to cruise – both teams knew it was going to be a battle, and in the end, the game was decided by a shoot-out. The important names you need to know: Jocelyne Lamoureux, who scored the deciding goal, and Maddie Rooney, who blocked the Canada’s final shot.
.@TeamUSA IS GOLDEN!
The @usahockey women take down rival Canada for their first gold since 1998! #WinterOlympics #BestOfUS https://t.co/wS6s9ulmoA pic.twitter.com/o4gJr8g7sV
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 22, 2018
YAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY!!!! I’m so proud of Team USA! I’m proud of Team Canada too, even though I know their hearts are broken with the silver medals. Canada loves hockey like America loves fried food, and I know this hurts. But I’m just so proud of these American ladies!!
Photos courtesy of Getty.
As a hockey fan, I’m so happy for this!!!!
Same Here! I am so thrilled for these women! My daughter is a goaltender for a fairly high-level girls hockey program and I have met a number of the National Team Members over the years – at USA Hockey events, NWHL games and clinics. After last year’s threatened walkout over training support and compensation, I can safely say I LOVE THEM! They stood up for themselves and for the younger players, like my daughter, who are coming up behind them.
These women earned their medal. I hope they enjoy every moment of this!
Its a sad day in Canada, but we will get through this. Loosing in a shoot out is devastating.
Congrats to team USA!
Amazing match!
Yes! It was devastating but what a match!! Losing in a shoot out always hurts
I wore black in mourning today – but can’t help but celebrate some amazing women’s hockey.
Did you see Moir cheering with the beer in his hand? Epic 🙂
Look at it this way: we may have a hockey gold medal but y’all have sane leadership and health insurance. Cheers!
Sane leadership???
@linda – saner than ours. by a Loooong shot.
I would be fine with either USA or Canada winning because I always root for both.
I am Canadian and would loved to have seen Canada win (again). But Team USA (women) have been nipping at the heels of Team Canada for years in terms of talent and development, so it was inevitable that they would eventually best the Canadians at the Olympics. Congratulations for a hard fought game.
Yayyyyy and I think it’s the anniversary of miracle on ice. Congrats team USA
Those ladies rocked! Go Team USA!
Ooooh team Canada you look salty, and I know why, but as a Canadian I’m still proud of them. Team USA-Congrats & see you next time!! 🙂
Who was the Canadian athlete who removed her silver medal? Not a good look.
And I’m happy for USA, but man, I hate shoot-outs.
#3 Jocelyn Larocque
I saw that, too. I was shocked and hoping her teammates would not follow her example. I really can understand how p*ssed off and anguished she felt at the same time, but it was very ungracious of her. Both teams deserve props for leaving it all in the Ice, and, yes, a shootout for the championship? Yikes.
Very happy for Team USA.
*Jocelyne*
So tacky IMO. I get you’re upset (same with the girl that literally sobbed through the medals and anthem)-but then there’s being a sore loser.
Larocque was also the same person that lit up cigars on the ice with the rest of the team after they won the gold in ’14 so I’m not surprised. Tacky winner, tacky loser.
They showed clips last night of how some of the American women reacted in 2014 and they weren’t all gracious either. I don’t agree with her actions of not wearing the medal, but crying during the anthem wasn’t about attacking the US and they were still unwinding from an intense game.
Nic919
+1!
I don’t agree at all with Jocelyne Larocque’s actions (hell, she has Olympic Gold and Silver, that’s something she should be proud of!), but I also remember the reactions of the US women in Sochi… they were also devastated at the loss and certainly weren’t celebrating their silver medal either.
Congrats to the US ladies on their gold medal, and to the Canadians for their silver medal.
Sounds like a lot of interesting things go on in this sport.
I love a bit of sports drama, partly because athletes are often more hardworking and talented than a lot of other types of celebrities. I can therefore root for them more.
US/Canada women’s hockey is one of the most intense rivalries in all of sports. They ALL know each other – a lot of them played college hockey together – they were teammates in the past and may be again in the future.
The captain of the US team from Sochi, Julie Chu, is married to the captain of the Canadian team from Sochi, Caroline Ouellette. They had a daughter, Liv, last year. There is a running joke in the women’s hockey community about which country Liv will play for when she grows up.
As close as the players are, they are fierce rivals on the ice. The friendships are left in the locker room and all they want is to win. And when they get beat, they are heartbroken, hence the tears from the silver medalists, every time.
Thanks, Liz, for that info.
Sounds like an intense rivalry indeed!
this video gave me goosebumps!
Woo!! So great to see that gold!
I’m happy for the United States team and super proud of our Canadians. It was a total battle and both teams fought their hardest. Seeing the women from the USA win made me smile, despite being Canadian, because I know they’ve felt disappointed by silver for so long.
Our Canadian team will come back fighting harder than ever next Olympics because of this and it will be another great hockey game in four years.
Yay for both teams!
I agree with everything you said. It was an incredible hockey game. As much as I feel bad for us, I can’t be mad at the US for winning. They fought really hard for that win and it has been a long time, so congrats US on a game most well-played.
Like someone else on here said, I’m looking forward to seeing other countries in the finals, in addition to the the two powerhouse countries of women’s hockey. It’s been 20 years of US/Canada dominance, so hopefully soon we’ll see other countries going for the gold as well.
Absolutely!!! It would have been amazing to see Noora Raty surrounded by a team that could have taken advantage of her astounding goaltending. The Finns played hard, but just couldn’t quite keep up with the US or Canada.
I stayed up to watch it and am so glad that I did. I feel like crap today but oh well! Go USA! #BestofUS
Oh, and the Canadian national team hadn’t lost a game in like 2+ years so yes, this is an unexpected result for them.
Shootout.
Fucking devastating.
I guess all things must end.
I DRANK SO LONG AND SO HARD.
It was so frustrating. I need a stiff drink afterwards. Not a good way to decide a gold medal game. I’d have preferred our girls lose in regulation or overtime. Ugh.
Yes, this stupid shoot-out rule has to go. The rush of an overtime, on-the-edge-of-your-seat, or standing two feet from your TV still yelling 71 minutes after the game should have been over, gold medal winning goal is one of a kind. Hitting the floor utterly crushed and in defeat when it’s not your team, is of course the other side of that gold medal winning goal rush. Either way, the shoot-out negates those feelings.
I think it’s good for women’s sport to have many teams being competitive. Next it would be great to see teams other than the US and Canada in the final. Like women’s football, the more teams that are good beyond the US, Germany, etc, the better.
Absolutely! the Finnish team is getting better and better. Hopefully the Swedes, Russians and others will follow suit. These bonkers games are always good for sports – shows that women’s hockey is just as amazing as men’s hockey.
I’d also like to add that Amanda Kessel is now a Gold Medal Olympian, and her brother, Phil, is a 2x Stanley Cup champion. That’s a strong hockey family!!!
I LOVE THE KESSELS. I really hope someone put a camera on Phil the Thrill while he watched his sister last night. So happy for the USA women’s team.
Phil has to play in the NHL, I don’t think he was in South Korea.
Phil was in Pittsburgh last night. He was tweeting at 2am, so he was up watching the game, but he wasn’t there to watch.
That Maddie Rooney looks like Ellen Page.
My US colleague today pointed out that when they won they played born in the USA, which you wouldn’t think was bad, except for these lyrics:
Got in a little hometown jam
So they put a rifle in my hand
Sent me off to a foreign land
To go and kill the yellow man
he’s of Korean origin and is super pissed off by it …
Sigh.
Women’s hockey is still amazing. well done team USA and don’t worry team Canada, we have faith in you for the next round
Who cares
It was a very poor choice.
I think originally Springsteen wrote this as criticism to US foreign policy (I may be pulling that out of my a** but thats what it sounds like). But to be played at a gold medal game and after a US victory seems weird to me… Wouldn’t they just stick to the anthem or your typical sports themed song?
Anyways congrats America. My bitterness will wear off lol. Apparently its just not my year.
Speaking as a long-term Springsteen fan whose seen him in concert over 25 times in 10 different states over 30 years, you would be correct. Springsteen wrote “Born in the USA” as a anti-Vietnam war song. He writes it from the point of view of a vet who comes home from the war and is not taken care of by his government, and people hate him for fighting in that “losing” war.
Unfortunately some people tried to co-op the song and make it a Pro-America theme. But if anybody’s ever listened to Springsteen or read his biography you know that’s not the case, and that was not Springsteen’s original intention.
If it helps, the song is critical of US imperialism, but I agree that if you don’t listen carefully it sounds problematic
From twitter: “we took the gold and we’re going to take Justin Trudeau too.” Lol. I WISH
I saw on the Nightly News that the team’s captain, whose last name is Knight, had gotten the USA team to threaten a boycott for going to the Winter Olympics if the women’s hockey team weren’t paid on par with what the men get paid. Apparently since women’s hockey doesn’t get the endorsements they were getting paid like 1/8 of what the men were.
The women’s team successfully negotiated together and while they didn’t get a pay raise that was equal to the men, they did get a salary increase. It shows you when women band together we can accomplish so much. Go Team USA!
That’s an inspiring story! Thanks for sharing
And that’s why it’s so important that a website like this pays attention to them. Let women sporters become more famous=more pay for them and more interest by the public=more girls and women taking up different sports + more respect for them.
Hilary Knight isn’t the captain (Meghan Duggan is), but the two of them spearheaded the campaign for better treatment for the Women & Girls programs by USA Hockey. It was a HUGE deal in the hockey community.
Duggan personally talked to every single woman on the National Team, the extended roster (about 100 women) and the Under 18 team to get their support. They negotiated for treatment that was equitable to what the Men & Boys were getting – basic things like Insurance coverage, per diems, tickets for their families, etc.
And for better development programs for the girls. Phil Kessel spent two years in a residential training program, fully paid for by USA Hockey. Amanda was offered a week or two of summer camps, paid for by their parents. They are supposed to be changing the development programs for the girls, maybe not soon enough for my teenager, but hopefully for the 8 and 9 year olds she coaches.
A great win. Other Renee Offspring was jumping up and down and screaming with joy. Very unlike her. The energy in that arena was totally infectious.
I’m bursting with pride, but shootouts are the worst. Great game! #USA
Shootouts are the worst way to end any playoff game. They need to get rid of them. Nothing is sweeter than a goal in the 3rd overtime of a game 7 series.
Also, Gary Bettman is still horrible for not letting the NHLers play in the Olympics.
I agree with you that it should be the player’s choice to play or not. This opportunity only comes around once for many of them, and it is an experience they’ll never forget. Bottom line for Bettman, though, it’s all about the $$$. He doesn’t want his NHL stars returning tired and worn out, unfit to play in their league and earn their salaries – it throws off the playoff revenues.
I agree, but it’s such rubbish. If the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga etc can let Neymar, Ronaldo and Messi play in the World Cup, Bettman can let the NHL stars play in the Olympics.
They paused NHL season last time there was Olympics. I didn’t understand it, they could have picked substitute players from AHL.
It would have been almost as same as player being on sick leave.
They only think about the money. 🙁
Can’t stand Bettman, he really needs to retire. It would be especially nice if he could take the neanderthal Don Cherry with him.
Shoot outs are not a clean win.
Yes! More coverage of women’s sports please.
I don’t know much about ice hockey, so it’s nice to learn a bit more about it on one of my favourite sites.
I LOATHE shoot outs/penalty kicks. I almost would rather them flip a coin, bec it’s such a guessing game bet shooter and goalie at that point. And, to me, that takes away from the skill and (usually) stout defense to end in a tie in the first place.
OK-rant over. Happy for USA, and congrats to Team Canada!
You’re ranting about what a guessing game a shootout is but you’d rather them flip a coin? Seriously?
I’m from Canada, married to an American man and living in the USA and I secretly wanted the USA to win. Well, not so secretly. I think they were so evenly matched and while a shootout is not an ideal way to win, it just goes to show how even these two teams were. This rivalry has gone on for so long and I’m happy for the USA. Good job girls!