Team USA beat Canada 3-2 in overtime, with Hilary Knight scoring the winner on the power play. It was an ending, and penalty call, Team Canada was not happy with.
KITCHENER, ON - It was another down to the wire game between Canada and the USA at the third stop of the Rivalry Series. While Canada outshot USA 34-22, it was Team USA who walked away with a 3-2 overtime win.
"I thought for the most part we carried the bulk of the play for the last 40 minutes," said Canada's head coach Troy Ryan.
Colgate star Danielle Serdachny opened the scoring for Team Canada in the first period beating Aerin Frankel over the blocker with fellow collegiate players Julia Gosling and Anne Cherkowski picking up assists.
USA answered back scoring twice in a 1:03, with the first going to Kirsten Simms in her first game with USA's national team. She grabbed a puck and cut across the crease firing back across her body beating Desbiens. In similar fashion, Abbey Murphy got Desbiens moving right to left a minute later and beat her in a similar spot.
As the game progressed the physical play ramped up with several scuffles following the whistle.
In the third period with Canada driving the net hard, Emily Clark found a rebound and shovelled home the tying goal to make it 2-2.
With time winding down, Emily Clark made a hard play for positioning in front of USA's net and was called for a penalty with only 23 seconds remaining.
After the game ended tied, USA carried a 4-on-3 powerplay into the extra frame. It didn't take long for USA to end it with the player advantage as Hilary Knight on-timed home a shot from the left circle to end the game and give USA the 3-2 win.
Canada's head coach Troy Ryan was not pleased with the penalty call that put Canada down in overtime. He described it as the right play, one he'd as Emily Clark to make every time she was on the ice, battling for positioning in a 2-2 game.
"That's a tough one, to lose it that way," said Ryan. "I think for the women's game, we want people to play competitive. I told [Clark], 100% of the time she should fight for that position at net front at the end of the game. I think a situation like that, we shouldn't be going down shorthanded at that point in the game...I think anybody who loves hockey wouldn't love the call."
Clark felt the support from her coach, despite the outcome.
"I definitely appreciate it," Clark said of Ryan's feedback.
"Any player, any competitor doesn't want to put their team in that situation in a game like this," she continued. "Obviously disappointed with the result, but I mean, everyone's human. I was just playing a gritty tough game and it's too bad that was the result."
Despite that result, which now sees Canada down 3-0 in the Rivalry Series, Canada knows what it takes to dig themselves out of a hole like this. Last year Canada also fell behind 3-0 to USA in the Rivalry Series before winning four straight games to take the series.
Canada and USA will play game four on Saturday in Sarnia, Ontario for a 5pm puck drop.