From PWHL Media
The United States–Canada rivalry was renewed for the seventh time in an Olympic Winter Games gold medal matchup, and it was Boston Fleet defender Megan Keller who delivered the decisive winner in a dramatic 3-on-3 overtime finish.
Keller deked past Vancouver Goldeneyes defender Chloe Thompson and slid the puck under the blocker of Montréal Victoire netminder Ann-Renée Desbiens to seal the victory.
Canada held the lead for much of the game, holding a 1–0 lead after New York Sirens forward Kristin O’Neill opened the scoring shorthanded early in the second period. That advantage stood until the closing minutes of regulation, when Seattle Torrent forward and U.S. captain Hilary Knight redirected a point shot from Laila Edwards up and over Desbiens to force overtime.
Playing in her final Olympic game, Knight’s game-tying goal set new U.S. Olympic career records for both goals (15) and points (33). Keller, meanwhile, finished the gold medal game with a goal and an assist, tying teammate Caroline Harvey for the tournament scoring lead at the Milano Cortina 2026 Games.
The Americans allowed just two goals the entire tournament, with the gold medal game marking their closest contest. Toronto Sceptres forward Daryl Watts finished as Canada’s leading point scorer.
With the win, the United States captured its third Olympic gold medal in women’s ice hockey, adding to titles in 1998 and 2018, while Canada earned silver for the third time.
The Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 concluded today with 41 PWHL players winning medals. Below is a recap of the results and notable performances.
MEDAL GAME RECAPS
GOLD: UNITED STATES (2) VS. CANADA (1) OT
Boston captain Megan Keller scored the golden goal at 4:07 of overtime to complete a thrilling comeback victory as the United States captured its third gold medal in Olympic women’s hockey history. The defender also earned a secondary assist on the historic game-tying tally by captain Hilary Knight of Seattle with just 2:04 remaining in regulation. Knight, playing in the final game of her fifth Olympics, set U.S. all-time records for goals and points with the marker. Minnesota forward Taylor Heise picked up the primary assist on the winning goal, and Fleet goaltender Aerin Frankel made 30 saves in her fifth tournament victory. Canada struck first on the scoreboard with a shorthanded goal 54 seconds into the middle frame by New York’s Kristin O’Neill, assisted by Montréal’s Laura Stacey and Toronto’s Renata Fast, for the first goal surrendered by the U.S. since the tournament’s opening game. Victoire goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens made 31 saves, limiting the Americans to just two goals after the high-powered offense had scored five or more in each of its first six games. Canada and the U.S. have now met seven times for gold in eight all-time Olympic tournaments, with five of those games decided by one goal and three going to extra time. The U.S. previously defeated Canada for Olympic gold in 2018 and 1998, with Canada winning gold in all five other tournaments. There are 39 PWHL players on the rosters for both teams, including 16 Americans and 23 Canadians.
BRONZE: SWITZERLAND (2) VS. SWEDEN (1) OT
Alina Müller was another Boston overtime hero today, scoring in the final minute of the extra frame to lead Switzerland to its second bronze medal in Olympic women’s hockey history. It was the 16th career Olympic goal scored by the Fleet alternate captain, whose first goal 12 years ago at age 15 was also the bronze-winning tally in a 4-3 victory over Sweden in Sochi. Also celebrating bronze from the PWHL is New York rookie defender Nicole Vallario who logged 22:41 of ice time and had one shot on goal in the contest. Sweden, with four PWHL players in the lineup, opened the tournament with five straight wins and outshot Switzerland 32-25 today in a push for their first Olympic medal since earning silver in 2006.
