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US Women's Hockey Team Clubbed the Canadians Like Baby Seals Yesterday. Oh, and They Made History.

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  February 11, 2026 6:55 AM

They’re like the Huns sweeping through the Western Roman Empire. Okay, maybe not the best example, but the US women’s hockey team is dominating thus far at the Winter Olympics in Milan, simply steamrolling its competition, including arch-rival Canada. Yesterday, for the first time in the Olympics, we shut them out 5-0. Still, the team and its coach, John Wroblewski, know they’re still a long way away from getting the gold (via ESPN):

The U.S. women's hockey team so thoroughly overwhelmed rival Canada that coach John Wroblewski issued a reminder that the 5-0 victory still left the Americans a long way from Olympic gold. 

"What's the hardest part of climbing the mountain?" the fourth-year coach asked. 

"Getting home," he said, answering his own question. "If you ever feel good about climbing Mount Everest, it's the way down. Oh, you think you've done something, that's when the mountain eats you up." 

[…] 

Team USA swept all four preliminary-round games by a combined score of 20-1 and brought back memories of how a Canadian team in its prime rolled to winning gold at the 2022 Beijing Games. 

The tables have since turned, and it was evident on the score sheet from a roster featuring seven players still in college. 

[…] 

Canada opened tentatively, and then ran into penalty problems minus its longtime leader, Marie-Philip Poulin, who suffered a lower-body injury in a 5-1 win over Czechia a day earlier. 

Not having their so-called "Captain Clutch" in the lineup was still no excuse for coach Troy Ryan. 

"We just didn't play very well at all. Irresponsible with the puck, like just poor puck management," Ryan said. "And it's not that there's not confidence, but we played like we didn't have confidence with the puck." 

[…] 

Aerin Frankel stopped 20 shots for her third win and second shutout in her first Olympic tournament. And 36-year-old captain Hilary Knight added an assist -- the 32nd Olympic point of her career to tie Jenny Potter for most by a U.S. women's hockey player. 

We clubbed the Canadians like seals. These are killer women. Keep going, ladies.