admin The United States reclaimed the gold medal from Canada at the Women’s World Ice Hockey Championship with a thrilling 4-3 overtime victory in Sunday’s final.
Tessa Janecke netted the decisive goal in extra time, securing the Americans’ second world title in three years, having also defeated host nation Canada in the 2023 final held in Brampton, Ontario. The U.S. now boasts 11 gold medals, just behind Canada’s 13.
It marked the tenth time a world final between the fierce rivals has extended into overtime or a shootout, with both sides now level at five wins apiece in such contests.
This gripping rivalry is set to continue at the next Olympic Winter Games in Milan and Cortina, Italy, where Canada will look to defend their Olympic title. The United States previously overcame Canada in a shootout to win Olympic gold in 2018.
U.S. captain Hilary Knight further cemented her legacy by extending her record for the most World Championship golds (10) and total medals (15) by a single player.
Janecke ended the match at 17:06 of the 20-minute overtime period, sliding the puck past Canadian goalkeeper Ann-Renée Desbiens following a well-placed pass from Taylor Heise. Heise, along with Caroline Harvey and Abbey Murphy, also scored for the United States.
Gwyneth Philips finished in goal for the U.S., making 17 saves after replacing Aerin Frankel in the third period. Frankel, who had made 27 saves, was forced off following a collision with Canada’s Laura Stacey.
Danielle Serdachny, Jennifer Gardiner, and Sarah Fillier were the goal-scorers for Canada. Desbiens turned away 26 shots in the narrow defeat.
This was the 23rd time the two nations have faced each other in the final of the women’s world championship. Just a week earlier, the U.S. had edged Canada 2-1 in a Pool A clash in Ceske Budejovice, Czechia.
In Sunday’s final, the Americans surged ahead with two quick goals from Harvey and Murphy within 29 seconds, starting at 7:16 of the second period. However, Canada responded swiftly with goals from Serdachny and Gardiner in a 55-second span.
Canada missed an opportunity to capitalise on consecutive U.S. penalties for tripping and hooking later in the second period.
Early in the third, during the U.S.’s first power play, Frankel collided with Stacey while racing to reach a loose puck near the faceoff circle. Frankel was substituted at 4:35, and Stacey’s charging penalty handed the Americans a 5-on-3 advantage. Heise capitalised with a superb top-corner finish at 5:27, giving the U.S. a 3-2 lead.
Fillier brought Canada level once more at 14:12, scoring from a rebound amid a goalmouth scramble. Earlier, Poulin had set up Gardiner with a pass from behind the net for a close-range finish at 9:32, equalising after the Americans’ initial lead. Poulin topped the tournament scoring charts with four goals and eight assists in seven games, earning MVP honours.
Serdachny’s earlier lofted shot beat a mispositioned Frankel at 8:37. Murphy scored shortly after at 7:45, reacting quickly to a loose puck following Desbiens’ fumble of a Kendall Coyne Schofield lob. Harvey had opened the scoring at 7:16 of the second period, switching from backhand to forehand before lifting the puck into the top corner.
In the bronze medal match, Finland defeated host nation Czechia 4-3 in overtime. It was the first time the women’s championship had been hosted in a Czech city.
The event drew a record crowd, with 122,331 fans attending matches at Budvar Arena before the medal games – surpassing the previous record of 119,231 set in 2007 in Winnipeg and Selkirk, Manitoba.
The host city for the 2026 Women’s World Ice Hockey Championship will be announced at the IIHF congress in May. Meanwhile, Denmark and Austria secured promotion to the top division in 2026 after winning their respective Division 1 tournaments.
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