AP Sports Writer
February 8, 2014
SOCHI, Russia (AP) — A new format (click here) was supposed
to make the Olympic women’s hockey tournament more competitive after
Vancouver, when then-IOC president Jacques Rogge hinted that the sport
could be kicked out of the Winter Games.
One day into the Sochi Games and the winners look the same.
The United States and Canada won their openers
at the Shayba Arena on Saturday despite changes that were supposed to
bring some of the marquee matchups into the round-robin. The Americans
beat Finland 3-1 and Canada beat Switzerland 5-0, showing that the North
American dominance of the sport is still supreme.
‘‘It’s the best result we've ever had against
Canada,’’ Swiss goalie Florence Schelling said after making 64 saves in a
5-0 loss to the three-time defending champions. ‘‘It shows we have
improved.’’
A spate of blowouts in 2010 led hockey’s
international governing body to place the four top teams in their own
group, with the next four in a group of their own. The teams in Group A
will compete for two spots in the semifinals and two in the
quarterfinals; two other spots in the quarterfinals will go to the top
two teams in Group B.
That means the United States faced Finland,
the 2010 bronze medalist, in the Sochi opener instead of China, which it
beat 12-1 to start the Vancouver Games. Finnish goalie Noora Raty, a
two-time NCAA champion, gave up Hilary Knight’s goal 53 seconds into the
game but stopped 40 shots to keep it close from there.
‘‘I always know that when you face the U.S. or
Canada, it’s going to be 40 or 50 shots,’’ she said. ‘‘They are the
huge favorites and we are the underdog.’’...
Underdog has always been a hero to me.
Underdog has always been a hero to me.
