One day into the Olympic women’s hockey tournament and the top two teams already are dealing with injury concerns.
After Canada lost veteran forward Melodie Daoust in a 12-1 win against Switzerland on Thursday, American forward Brianna Decker was carried off the ice on a stretcher with a leg injury after getting tangled up with Finland’s Ronja Savolainen.
It appears Decker’s tournament is over.
Brianna Decker’s Olympics are done. She was on crutches and her left foot was in a boot.
— Helene Elliott (@helenenothelen) February 3, 2022
Canada offered no timeline for Daoust’s injury.
Hockey Canada update on Melodie Daoust:
“She is resting and continues to be assessed by our medical teams. No further details as to her status for the next game.”@CBCOlympics
— Kenzie Lalonde (@KenzieLalonde_) February 3, 2022
While skating the puck into the offensive zone, Daoust was hit by Swiss defence Sarah Forster. Daoust was slow to get up and skated slowly to the bench, holding her right arm while making her way to the locker room.
Daoust is in her third Olympics and was tournament MVP in 2018 when Canada lost in the final against the U.S.
Decker, 30, also is at the Games for a third time.
Depth could be more of a concern for the Americans. CBC reported Canada has a taxi squad in Beijing, while the U.S. does not.
Canada lights up scoreboard
Canada didn’t take long to regain its scoring touch.
Playing their first game since December after having two friendlies against the United States cancelled because of COVID-19, the Canadians enjoyed their biggest offensive output in a game since 2013.
Several new Olympians played key roles for Canada, including Sarah Filler, who scored the first two goals of the game, and Claire Thompson, who had a goal and four assists.
“We were all so excited to play after taking so much time off,” Thompson said. “The girls came out of the gate flying and never let our foot off the gas. I think I was definitely a bit nervous at the start of the game, but the veteran players gave us some advice and we can always look to them at any point because they are just so calm. I was able to settle into the game pretty quick and had a lot of fun out there.”
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Coach Troy Ryan also was happy with his team’s effort after Canada outshot the Swiss 70-15.
“I think there were a lot of good things in the game. I thought offensively we were deliberate and intentional with everything we did,” he said. “We stuck to our systems and concepts and had some success with it. It was nice to see some of the young ones score their first Olympic goal, and it was fun. I think early on everybody just wants to get a shift or two under their belts, but once they did, everyone, including the rookies, settled in.”
Fillier was one of four two-goal scorers for Canada, joining Natalie Spooner, who also had three assists, Laura Stacey and Blayre Turnbull.
Canada, which captured the world title last year after losing to the United States in the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, had little trouble with the Swiss, who finished fourth at last year’s worlds.
Things figure to get tougher on Saturday (Friday at 11:10 p.m. ET) when Canada faces Finland, bronze winners at last year’s worlds.
All five teams from the top-ranked Group A — featuring Canada, the United States, Finland, Switzerland and the Russians — advance to the quarterfinals. The top three teams in five-team Group B also move on.
United States 5, Finland 2
Kendall Coyne Schofield and Alex Carpenter each had a pair of goals as the Americans faced little resistance from Finland. Shots were 52-12 in favour of the Americans. Susanna Tapani had both of Finland’s goals.
Czech Republic 3, China 1
The Czechs got to celebrate a win after their Olympic debut in the sport. The Czechs outshot the hosts 36-14 and got goals from Michaela Pejzlova, Tereza Radova and Denisa Krizova.
Japan 3, Sweden 1
Haruna Yoneyama’s empty-netter with 1:01 left sealed Japan’s win over a short-handed Swedish roster (because of COVID-19 issues). Japan outshot the Swedes 40-27.
Friday schedule
Russia vs. Switzerland, 11:10 p.m. ET (Thursday)
Denmark vs. China, 11:10 p.m. ET (Thursday)
Friday spotlight
The Russians could be short-handed for their tournament opener. Stephen Wyyno of The Associated Press reported that Russia was missing five players from its roster on Thursday for practice because of COVID-19 problems.
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