Ice Hockey – Constancy Sport

from @hockeycanada on instagram

USA vs Canada Women’s Ice Hockey; A rivalry that has lasted since their first meeting in April 1987. They have already faced each other in the 2026 Winter Olympic games and will face each other again in the Gold Medal match on Thursday (19th February). Playing 194 times, they have faced each other in seven of the eight Olympics, as well as 23 of 24 IIHF Women’s World Championships and 21 of 23 4 Nations Cups since the beginning of their international play.

Canada currently lead the rivalry 106 wins to America’s 87 but in their latest meeting, USA won 5-0 in the first meeting of the 2026 Winter Olympics. In 1998, America won gold over Canada, but since then the Canadians have dominated in the Olympics where they have won the next four gold medals against the USA (except for 2006 – where Canada won Gold and USA won Bronze). Until 2018, this happened and USA ended the gold winning drought after winning in a shoot out but Canada regained that Gold the following Olympic games in 2022.

In the World Championships, it is a different story for the USA as from 2005 to 2019 they dominated winning 9 out of 11 and defeating the Canadians on eight occasions. Since 2020, the World Championships have been won by Canada in 3 out of the last 4. At the 4 Nations Cup (a round robin competition with Finland and Sweden added), the two faced each other in every gold medal match (apart from 2001 and 2013) but has not been played since 2018. Between 1996 and 2010, Canada won 12 out of 15 matches with 2011-2018, USA won 6 of the 8.

In the preliminary round of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, the USA won 5-0 with goals from Caroline Harvey, Laila Edwards, Kirsten Simms and two from Hannah Bilka . This was not the first time they faced each other twice in the Olympics as it happened in 2022 in China. Back then, Canada won both with the preliminary round being won 4-2 and the Gold Medal match being won by 3-2.

How both teams got to the final

USA:

5/02 – USA 5-1 Czechia – Preliminary Round

7/02 – USA 5-0 Finland – Preliminary Round

9/02 – Switzerland 0-5 USA – Preliminary Round

10/02 – Canada 0-5 USA – Preliminary Round

13/02 – USA 6-0 Italy – Play-offs Quarterfinals

16/02 – USA 5-0 Sweden – Play offs Semifinals

Canada:

7/02 – Switzerland 0-4 Canada – Preliminary Round

9/02 – Canada 5-1 Czechia – Preliminary Round

10/02 – Canada 0-5 USA – Preliminary Round

12/02 – FInland 0-5 Canada – Preliminary Round

14/02 – Canada 5-1 Germany – Play-offs Quarterfinals

16/02 – Canada 2-1 Switzerland – Play-offs Semifinals

Players to Watch

Canada’s Daryl Watts:

Playing in all six games, Watts has had eight contributions including two goals and six assists making her a forward to watch. The 26 year old (making her Olympic debut in these games) plays her hockey for Toronto Sceptres in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) and in 2021, was named the University of Wisconsin Female Athlete of the Year. The forward finished her NCAA career as the second highest scorer of all time and remains the highest scoring active player to have completed in NCAA Hockey.

Following the dissolution of the PHF (Premier Hockey Federation), She entered the PWHL draft and was selected by Ottawa in the inaugural draft. After the 2023/24 season, she became a free agent and signed with her current team, Toronto Sceptres. While with the Sceptres, she reached 50 career points (the second player in PWHL history to do so) and quickly emerged to become one of the league’s top offensive players.

USA’s Caroline Harvey:

Same as Watts, Harvey has played in six games and received nine goal contributions including two goals and seven assists. As a defense, this shows that she is a player to keep your eyes on in the final. Aged 23, she is currently a senior at the University of Wisconsin and regarded as one of the best defenseman in the world. This is due to her becoming only the second defenseman in history to lead the USA at an Olympics or World Championships in points. As well as being named as the best Defenseman at the 2023 and 2025 World Championships.

She made her Olympic debut aged 19 in 2022 and was the youngest player on the roster, winning a silver medal – her medal tally isn’t too bad either. She has won gold at the 2023 and 2025 World Championships as well as silver in the 2021, 2022 and 2024 Worlds. For U18 level, she has won gold in 2020 and in 2019, won silver.

Canada’s Marie-Philip Poulin:

We couldn’t not include Captain and lead Olympic scorer, Marie-Philip Poulin. She was named the IIHF Female Player of the Year in 2025 and recently scored her 20th Olympic goal, a new record for the Canadian. She is a three-time Olympic gold medallist as well as being a four-time World Champion for her national team. She scored the winning goal in the gold medal matches for three out of the four games she has competed in (2010,2014 and 2022).

The 34 year old currently plays for the Montreal Victoire, becoming captain for the squad in 2023, and was protected from the 2025 Expansion Draft from Seattle and Vancouver. She was named a knight of the National Order of Quebec in 2024 and has been the Captain of the Canadian National team since 2015. She is now widely being regarded as one of the greatest Canadian players of all time for her clutch performances on the ice.

photo taken from @badgerswhockey on instagram

The Winter Olympics Ice Hockey campaign commenced on Thursday 5th February in Milano Cortina and at the Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena with the side winning 5-1 against Czechia, to open up their Olympic games campaign. Goals from Alex Spencer, Joy Dunne, Hilary Knight and a double from Hayley Scamurra helped secure the win for the side. The team have medaled in all seven Olympic appearances to date including gold in 1998 and 2018.

On the same day, Laila Edwards made her Olympic Debut but this was more than just making her debut. She became the first black player to make her Olympic debut for the USA Ice Hockey team. The Ohio Native plays for collegiate side, University of Wisconsin with the 22 year old senior graduating this year. The youngster has won two World Championship medals including a Gold and Silver at the 2025 and 2024 World Championships respectively, being named Tournament MVP aged just 20 (the youngest to do so).

In 2023, She made history as the first Black woman to play for the USA Senior Women’s National Team and the first to score a goal for Team USA at the Worlds in 2024. Meanwhile at Collegiate Level, she calls University of Wisconsin her home and has won two NCAA National Championships with the Badgers (in 2023 and 2025). Alongside this, she was a top-three finalist in the Patty Kazmaier Award in 2025 and led the nation with 35 goals in her junior season. In 2024, the right forward also won the USA Hockey Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year Award.

Born and raised in Ohio, she began figure skating aged three before moving to ice hockey the year later and was enrolled in the Cleveland Heights Youth Hockey Program. By the age of eight, Edwards was travelling out of state for tournaments and played AAA Hockey with different boys’ teams, as well as participating in the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite Girls Hockey Program. She moved to a different High School aged 13 for its elite girls’ hockey program and during her career there, she scored 147 goals and 266 assists in 287 games between 2018 and 2022.

Laila Edwards in Team USA Colours | photo taken from @teamusa on instagram

She began her collegiate career in the 2022-23 season and during her freshman year, she had 13 goals and 14 assists in 41 games, ultimately being named in the WCHA All-Rookie Team. She was named in the NCAA All-Tournament team after she recorded four goals and one assist to help her Wisconsin side to their seventh national championship, in the 2023 NCAA Division I Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament.

In her sophomore year (2023-24), she recorded 21 goals and 35 assists in 41 games and was named in the All-WCHA Third Team. For the 2024-25 season, she was named as the alternate captain for the season and in her junior year she put on 35 goals and 36 assists in 41 games, leading the nation with her goal scoring attributes. Her goals were the most by a Wisconsin Badger since Brianna Decker in 2011-12 when she recorded 37 goals. In that season, she was named in the All-WCHA First Team and during the semifinals, she recorded a hat-trick which helped the side reach the final for the third consecutive season.

For the USA Hockey team, she represented the U18’s in 2022 for their IIHF World Women’s Championship where she was also named alternate captain. She led the team with eight goal contributions in five games and won a silver medal and was named the most valuable player, the best forward and in the All-Tournament team. The following year, she was named in the senior team and played in the November Rivalry Series against Canada.

In March 2024, she was named in the squad for the 2024 IIHF Women’s World Championship and during the preliminary round, she was the first black woman to score a goal for the team in the Championship. During the semifinal stage, she recorded a hat-trick and led the squad to a silver medal in the series with six goals and two assists in seven games. In the same tournament, she also won Tournament MVP and was named in the All-Star team, ultimately becoming the youngest to be named MVP at the IIHF World Women’s Championship.

Laila Edwards is one to watch across the tournament and in the future as she moves from forward to defense and is learning to adapt to this new lifestyle. USA continue with their Olympics campaign on Saturday 7th February as they face Finland at 3.40pm (GMT Time).