The United States women’s hockey team shutout Team Sweden 5-0on Monday and advanced to the gold medal game on Thursday.
Team USA is on a roll
Team USA improved to 6-0 in the tournament and was ready to face undefeated Sweden. They dealt with it quickly, scoring four goals in the second period and then holding onto the 5-0 lead for the third-period win. The game was a textbook for the Americans. The most impressive goal came from there Abbey Murphywho had the puck, took his time and fired it over the goaltender’s left shoulder and under the post for the goal.
The US has outscored its opponents 31-1 in this tournament; the only goal conceded came in the second period of their first match against Team Czech Republic. They have also scored no fewer than five goals in a match, including six against Team Italy in the quarter-finals and five against every other opponent.
Goalkeeping Aerin Frankel was spectacular, but the defense really got going against Sweden. Megan Keller and Laila Edwards were among the best defenders during the Olympic Games and deserve all their flowers. They are ruthless up front and their attacking attack doesn’t give their opponents any chance to breathe. Head coach John Wroblewski’s team was a daredevil and deserved the chance to play for gold.
Team USA needs to stay off the beaten path
The only thing Team USA struggled with was staying out of the penalty box. In the second period they took three penalties and almost allowed Sweden to shift the momentum. The US scored four goals in the second frame, but were outscored 13 – 11.
Joy Dunne, the youngest player ever play for the United States at the age of 20 (from “Joy Dunne, U.S. women’s hockey’s youngest player, makes her mark at the Olympics” – The Athletic, 2/12/2026), she made a big step in penalty kicks. She disrupted passes on the forecheck and had a few good poke checks, one of which led to a breakaway, but she was stopped by goaltender Ebba Svensson Traff. Dunne was all over the place on the penalty kill and was the main reason it remained perfect.
The US needs to be more disciplined in its final Olympic match. Even a team as good as them can only take so many penalties until they pay for it.
Team Sweden can be proud
Although it is not easy to be left out in a semi-final, it is a young team that will now play for bronze. Sweden should keep their heads up and concentrate on playing Canada or Switzerland on Thursday. However, they held on until midway through the second period against the best team in the tournament.
Related: Guide to the 2026 Winter Olympics women’s hockey tournament
Sweden had two straight shutouts heading into this game, conceding just one goal in the first two games. Head coach Ulf Lundberg may have been a little too quick, pulling Svensson Traff with just a few minutes left in the second after Team USA’s fourth goal, as she held on as long as she could. Emma Soderberg came in and not long after Hayley Scamurra scored to make it 5-0. Hopefully Svensson Traff remains confident in the battle for the bronze medal.
Sweden is rising in the women’s hockey rankings. They have nothing to be ashamed of; they simply struggled to keep the puck out of their net against the tournament’s best offense.
Team USA will face the winner of Canada vs. Switzerland (now) in Thursday’s gold medal match as they look to continue their run through the competition at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
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