Canada hockey rebounded from Tuesday's 5-0 loss to Team USA with a 5-0 shutout win over Finland on Thursday, capping the women's preliminary round at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
PWHL star Emily Clark scored twice while Jenn Gardiner, Daryl Watts, and Kristin O'Neill all added singles to Canada's tally, while Julia Gosling and Laura Stacey each recorded two assists. Meanwhile, goalie Ann-Renée Desbiens posted 17 saves in her third start in four days.
Gardiner opened scoring in the first period, finishing off a no-look pass from Gosling. Watts later doubled the lead in the second period on a Sarah Fillier backhand feed, before O'Neill made it 3-0 when her shot deflected off a Finnish skate and into the goal. Clark subsequently secured the win with two third-period goals, including a wraparound finish.
Canada hockey takes the ice without captain Marie-Philip Poulin
Canada played without captain Marie-Philip Poulin for the second straight game on Thursday, after the forward exited Monday's 5-1 win over Czechia with a lower-body injury.
Poulin — who sits one goal shy of Hayley Wickenheiser's all-time Olympic women's hockey scoring record — also sat out Tuesday's Team USA routing. Coach Troy Ryan told reporters he remains optimistic she'll return for the knockout round.
“She skated today with our medical staff and one of our coaches,” Ryan said ahead of today's win.
“She felt well, obviously not good enough right now to put her in the game. An extra couple days will do her justice. But everything was positive from the skate that she had today, so we’re still optimistic that she’ll return at some point.”
How to watch Team Canada in the women's hockey quarterfinals
Canada finishes Group A on a 3-0-0-1 record. This latest win sets up a quarterfinal clash with Group B runner-up Germany on Saturday at 10:40 AM ET, live on Peacock.
USA Hockey just keeps getting hotter, blanking Finland 5-0 on Saturday to open the 2026 Winter Olympics on a 2-0 group-stage run.
Five-time Olympian and team captain Hilary Knight tied the US Olympic women's goal record with her 14th career tally in Saturday's win, with Alex Carpenter, Taylor Heise, Abbey Murphy, and Megan Keller also adding to the scoresheet.
"I just love scoring and just the pure elation of finding the back of the net," the 36-year-old said postgame. "It's pure excitement and it's fun to celebrate."
As a team, the US overwhelmingly outshot Finland 49-11, bringing the Stateside squad to a total of 18 straight Olympic wins against non-Canada opponents — a streak dating back nearly 20 years.
Unbeaten Team USA will next take on one-loss Switzerland on Monday afternoon, with the US looking to stay perfect ahead of Tuesday's showdown with rival Canada.
The pair last faced off in April, when the US downed the Swiss 5-0 at the 2025 IIHF World Championship — with Knight claiming the all-time Worlds assist record in the process.
Switzerland enters Monday's matchup on a split record, opening with a 4-3 shootout win over Czechia on Friday before losing their second group-stage clash 4-0 to Canada.
How to watch USA Hockey vs Switzerland tonight
Team USA faces off against Switzerland at 2:40 PM ET on Monday, airing live on USA Network.
USA Hockey is off to a hot start in Milan, taking down Czechia 5-1 on Thursday to open their 2026 Winter Olympics campaign in style.
While Barbora Juříčková registered Czechia's lone tally, Hayley Scamurra scored a brace and Alex Carpenter notched both a goal and an assist in the rout, with Ohio State junior Joy Dunne also finding the back of the net before USA captain Hilary Knight scored the 13th Olympic goal of her career.
"It was incredible," Scamurra told reporters postgame. "Whenever I go out there, I just try to bring all the energy that I can to the team. To be able to produce is the cherry on top."
The US will next turn their attention to Saturday's showdown against Finland, with the Finns still recovering from a norovirus outbreak that postponed their Thursday opener with Canada.
The IOC rescheduled the Finland vs. Canada matchup for next Thursday, but the weekend game remains on the official Olympic hockey schedule.
"I think we're planning on playing Finland, until somebody tells me differently," said USA Hockey head coach John Wroblewski. "But, I hope that they're okay. That's the most important part."
How to watch USA Hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics
Team USA will take on Finland at 10:40 AM ET on Saturday, airing live on USA Network.
The third and final round of 2025 Euro group-stage matches begins on Thursday, when some teams will battle for survival while other tournament frontrunners rest easy having already secured their spots in the knockouts.
Of the competition's 16 teams, four punched their tickets to the quarterfinals in their second matches, with four others conceding elimination.
World No. 16 Norway led the charge to the European Championship knockouts, becoming the first team to advance by topping Group A last Sunday.
No. 2 Spain followed suit with a dominant 6-2 Monday win over No. 20 Belgium to top Group B, while No. 3 Germany and No. 6 Sweden wrapped up Group C by notching their second Euro wins on Tuesday.
On the other hand, Belgium, No. 12 Denmark, No. 14 Iceland, and No. 27 Poland saw their 2025 Euro hopes end this week, as two losses plus other group results snuffed out any chance to advance.
The remaining third group-play matches will now decide the second Group A and B teams to make the quarterfinals, with host No. 23 Switzerland and surprise contender No. 26 Finland squaring off for the Group A spot on Thursday.
While No. 13 Italy can lock up a knockout berth with a win or a draw against Spain on Friday, No. 22 Portugal is not out of the Group B running just yet — though their path to advance is tough, requiring an Italy loss plus a high-scoring win over Belgium.
"Group of Death" comes down to final day of group play
The 2025 Euro's notorious "Group of Death" still has everything to play for, as all four teams in the hyper-competitive Group D could still technically advance — though some have wildly clearer paths than others.
No. 10 France sits in the lead with six points, while defending champions No. 5 England and the No. 11 Netherlands will go into Group D's third matchday on Sunday tied with three points apiece.
The Dutch have arguably the toughest task on Sunday, likely needing a goal-heavy win over Les Bleues to keep their Euro dream alive, while a draw would see France secure their quarterfinal spot.
After saving their back-to-back title campaign with a 4-0 thumping of the Netherlands on Wednesday, the Lionesses will face No. 30 Wales to close out the group stage, advancing with a defeat of their UK rivals plus either a goal differential lead over the Dutch or a Netherlands loss.
"We bounced back from the previous game and showed we were more than capable [of] showing the world what we can do," England goalscorer Lauren James told the BBC after Wednesday's win.
As for the Euro debutants, Wales saw Seattle Reign midfielder Jess Fishlock score their first major tournament goal in team history in their Wednesday loss to France, keeping spirits high despite trailing in Group D with two tournament losses.
That said, a massive Sunday win over England plus a French implosion against the Dutch could statistically, if improbably, see the Dragons sneak through.
All in all, the 2025 Euro group stage has presented mostly straightforward results in the early stages, but there's still room for a few more twists and turns before the knockouts.
How to watch the final 2025 Euro group-stage matches
Each group will take the 2025 Euro pitch for their final first-round matches on consecutive days.
All matches will kick off at 3 PM ET:
- Thursday, Group A: No. 26 Finland vs. No. 23 Switzerland, No. 16 Norway vs. No. 14 Iceland
- Friday, Group B: No. 22 Portugal vs. No. 20 Belgium, No. 13 Italy vs. No. 2 Spain
- Saturday, Group C: No. 27 Poland vs. No. 12 Denmark, No. 6 Sweden vs. No. 3 Germany
- Sunday, Group D: No. 5 England vs. No. 30 Wales, No. 11 Netherlands vs. No. 10 France
Live coverage of 2025 Euro matches will air across Fox Sports platforms.
The 2025 European Championship is officially underway, as Euro action kicked off with a group-stage upset on Wednesday.
Though the 2025 UEFA tournament's opener was a sweltering affair amid a European heat wave, world No. 26 Finland prevailed, earning a 1-0 upset win over No. 14 Iceland in Group A.
Finnish winger Katariina Kosola played hero, curling in the winning goal in the match's 70th minute — just 12 minutes after Iceland midfielder Hildur Antonsdóttir picked up the competition's first red card.
"The result is important for our confidence," Kosola said after Finland's first major tournament win since the 2009 Euro. "It was the kind of goal I have been practicing a lot."
"It's terrible to lose and we feel frustrated," said Iceland head coach Thorsteinn Halldórsson. "It is an even group and we knew Finland were good, but our first half wasn't good enough."
Elsewhere, No. 16 Norway closed out Wednesday's slate on top of Group A, taking three points by defeating host No. 23 Switzerland in day's second match.
Led by captain and 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg — who pulled the match even with a second-half strike — Norway battled to a 2-1 comeback win, despite the Swiss side outshooting and out-possessing the Norwegians.
How to watch this week's 2025 Euro action
Group B steals the 2025 Euro spotlight on Thursday.
While No. 13 Italy snagged a 1-0 opening win over No. 20 Belgium to kick off the day, 2023 World Cup champions and tournament favorite No. 2 Spain will face No. 22 Portugal at 3 PM ET.
Friday's Group C slate will pit No. 12 Denmark against No. 6 Sweden at 12 PM ET, before No. 3 Germany contends with No. 27 Poland at 3 PM ET.
Closing out the first group-stage matches will be arguably the toughest draw of the 2025 Euro pool.
Saturday's Group D slate features major tournament debutants No. 30 Wales against the No. 11 Netherlands at 12 PM ET, with No. 10 France taking on defending champions No. 5 England to cap the day at 3 PM ET.
Live coverage of 2025 Euro matches will air across Fox Sports platforms.
After defeating Germany 3-0 in Thursday’s quarterfinal round, Team USA will take on host nation Czechia in Saturday's 2025 IIHF World Championship semifinals, as the squad seeks a record-extending 24th straight appearance in the tournament's title game on Sunday.
"They have the home crowd, so it's definitely going to be a gritty game," US forward Lacey Eden said of Saturday’s matchup. "It's going to be a battle, but we'll be ready for it. We can use the fan energy and kind of go off that."
This year's tournament mirrors Team USA's path in 2024, when the US downed fellow powerhouse Canada in the group stage to reach the title game undefeated — only to lose 6-5 to their North American rivals in an overtime thriller of a championship match.
"It's everything to us," USA defender Cayla Barnes said earlier this week. "We want to be in that final and obviously want to be back on top of the podium, seeing as we fell short last year."
Canada has their own semifinal ahead of them, as the 2024 champs take the ice against Finland in Saturday’s IIHF closer.
Finland is the only country other than the US and Canada to ever play in a Women’s World Championship final, earning silver after taking down Canada in the semis in 2019.
How to watch the 2025 IIHF World Championship this weekend
The 2025 IIHF World Championship semifinals begin Saturday, when the USA takes on Czechia at 9 AM ET, before Canada battles Finland at 1 PM ET.
Saturday's winners will square off in Sunday's final at 12 PM ET.
All US games will air live on the NHL Network.