Team USA swept the opening stops of the 2023-2024 Rivalry Series beating Canada in both games, including 5-2 Saturday in Los Angeles.
Team USA swept the opening stops of the 2023-2024 Rivalry Series beating Canada in both games, including 5-2 Saturday in Los Angeles.
Team USA was clearly the better team on the opening weekend of the Rivalry Series winning both games against Team Canada.
After beating Canada 3-1 in the opening game in Tempe, Arizona, USA did it again in Los Angeles taking an even more decisive 5-2 win.
Alex Carpenter opened the scoring for USA late in the first period finding a puck on the backdoor and beating Canadian netminder Kristen Campbell to give the Americans the lead.
To open the second period, Laura Stacey got Canada on the board beating Nicole Hensley shorthanded. Stacey grabbed a turnover in the neutral zone and broke in down the left side beating Hensley cleanly with a wrist shot to the short side.
Midway through the frame, Britta Curl collected a turnover off the stick of Sophie Jaques high in the slot and scoring under Campbell's glove to give USA the 2-1 lead.
Less than four minutes later, Hanna Bilka found a loose puck on the doorstep scoring her first of the series, with assist going to Carpenter and Tessa Janecke.
In the third period, Jamie Lee Rattray pounced on a turnover and outraced American netminder Nicole Hensley to the loose puck, getting around the goaltender and tucking the puck into the open net.
Minutes later however, on the powerplay, Gabbie Hughes went to the front of the net and redirected an Abbey Murphy one-timer into the Canadian net to regain USA's two goal lead putting her team up 4-2. Hughes would punch home her second of the game again on the powerplay with under six minutes to go in the third, capping off the scoring for USA in their 5-2 win.
The two teams will return to action in Kitchener and Sarnia, Ontario in December.