Team Canada booked its place in the Gold Medal game against Team USA, but it wasn't easy and it needed a superhuman effort from injured captain Marie-Philip Poulin which is worrying.
After Team USA booked its place in the gold medal game thanks to a 5-0 win over Sweden, Team Canada took to the ice to face Switzerland for the second time in this tournament. The status of the Canadian captain, Marie-Philip Poulin, was the big story at the arena, though.
Even though she had come back to play in the quarterfinal against Germany, Poulin confirmed that she had tweaked her right knee in Canada’s 5-1 win over Czechia on Monday, and she didn’t look like she was at 100%.
During CBC’s coverage of the Canada-Switzerland game, the captain was shown making her way to the rink before the game in a golf cart, along with Switzerland’s goaltender. The broadcaster added that Poulin wanted to avoid walking the distance as she was in pain. Throughout the first frame, there were also shots of the captain on the Canadian bench in discomfort.
Poulin, being who she is, still managed to score the first two goals of the game, giving her country a 2-0 lead in the crucial game and beating Hayley Wickenheiser’s record of 18 Olympic goals with her 19th and 20th goals. There’s no denying that she’s a national treasure and an incredible athlete. Even while injured, she was still the best player on the ice, maintaining the same intensity and dedication. Still, at times, you could see her brace herself for pain as she was getting ready to push for a burst of speed.
She spent 5:59 on the ice in the first frame, 5:31 in the second frame, as she was thankfully assessed a penalty, which forced her to sit in the box for two minutes. But that’s just a figure of speech; she was jumping up and down in there as she felt the Swiss should have been called for a penalty as well after a hit on Kristin O’Neill. In the final frame, as the Swiss refused to go down quietly and cut down the Canadian lead in half, she skated in a further 6:28 of action.
There’s absolutely no denying that Poulin is the heart and soul of the team, and it’s obvious that she wanted to play with all of her heart, but sometimes, athletes should be protected from themselves. It’s easy to understand how big the moment is. Poulin is 34, and these could be her last Olympics after all; every goal she scores furthers her legend, not that she cares about that. But if this is to be the final act of her Olympic career, she wants to finish it on her own terms, and she wants to take Canada to that Gold Medal, much like Lindsay Vonn, who competed on a ruptured ACL earlier in the Games, wanted to get that one last opportunity for gold.
Poulin had taken part in four Olympic Games before Milan, and in three of those, Canada had captured gold, each time with a Poulin game-winner; one doesn’t become Captain Clutch without being a game-breaker.
Given how painful the injury looks, though, it would hardly be surprising if Poulin wasn’t available to play for the Montreal Victoire after the Olympic break. It makes sense for her not to be, and to finally take the time needed to heal the ailment, regardless of how serious it is.
As for Canada, the fact that their leader has to play injured and put the team on her back despite popping painkillers on the bench should be a major concern. The Canadian program is aging, and in the country’s greatest hour of need, no one besides the injured captain could step up to punch its ticket to the final. It’s also a worry that the Canadians only beat Switzerland 2-1; this is Canada’s most modest semifinal win ever. Given the kind of team that’s waiting for them in the final, a well-oiled Team USA, it’s hard to imagine how this team could successfully defend the Gold Medal it won in Beijing.
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