UTICA, New York – Canada’s Danielle Serdachny scored at overtime, delivering a gold-medal with a 6-5 win over the United States at the IIHF Women’s World Championship.
The Americans suffered a grave miscue 3:17 in the extra period when they were caught with too many players on the ice. Serdachny scored with two seconds remaining on the power play.
The forward unintentionally got in front of a shot by defender Erin Ambrose, but the puck fell to her left. With her back turned to goaltender Aerin Frankel, Serdachny backhanded the puck in for the game-winner.
“I’m going to have to watch it because it’s kind of a blur,” Serdachny said. “I think Ambrose took a shot. I was just trying to get in front. I think hit me in the thigh and then the rebound there was just there and I tapped it in, so, a pretty special one.”
“It was surreal to be honest,” Canada captain Marie-Philip Poulin said according to AP. “My heart went through a lot during that game, but that’s why you train. That’s why you go through all these painful workouts where sometimes it doesn’t go so well, but you stick to it.”
The 33-year-old Poulin earned her nickname with gold medal-clinching goals in two Winter Games and the 2021 world championships – each time against the US.
Ella Shelton came up with a key save 3:20 into overtime when a loose puck trickled dangerously close to an open net before the defender swatted it away to preserve the tie.
Canada got on the board first at 6:32. Defender Erin Ambrose picked off a clearing pass by Caroline Harvey at the point and fired it back on net. It hit a stick in front and bounced over Aerin Frankel’s shoulder.
But the Americans responded on a delayed penalty 1:40 later to square it. Laila Edwards collected a pass from Wisconsin Badgers teammate Kirsten Simms along the right boards, skated to the bottom of the circle and put a wrist shot in the top, near-side corner.
A little more than three minutes into the second period, Julia Gosling gave Canada the lead again with a wrist shot from the right faceoff dot.
“I had some speed and I had a clear shot,” Gosling said. “I saw an opening and just ripped it.”
Megan Keller tied it at two apiece halfway through the period. The defender took a cross-ice pass from Hannah Bilka at the top of the left faceoff circle. Her shot hit Ann-Renee Desbiens’ right arm and bounced in.
The US took its first lead of the game at 16:32. Kendall Coyne Schofield fed Alex Carpenter in the slot from behind the net. Carpenter, surrounded by Canadians, settled the puck and fired it past Desbiens.
But Marie-Philip Poulin evened the score again, striking with 68 seconds remaining in the middle stanza. After forcing a turnover, Poulin skated to the left faceoff dot and, using Keller as a screen, beat Frankel blocker-side.
With Poulin in the box for an illegal hit on Britta Curl, Hilary Knight knocked in a power-play goal to give the United States a 4-3 lead.
The advantage lasted all of 1:50 when Emily Clark’s centering pass from below the left goal line hit Harvey in front and bounced past Frankel.
Canada regained the lead 93 seconds later when Poulin, untouched at the side of the United States net, whacked away at least three rebounds before getting it over Frankel’s left pad.
Poulin went so far as to search out US captain Hilary Knight and give her a hug on the ice. “We just said `that was unbelievable,” Poulin said.
Though American defenseman Caroline Harvey had a goal and assist, she also had two pucks go in off her.
