‘There’s just no quit in this group:’ Dynamic U.S. team to play for gold at Worlds

One of the most impressive characteristics about the U.S. women’s hockey team at this week’s IIHF Women’s World Championship is how players responded in rare moments of defeat.

Down 2-0 against Canada in group play? The Americans charged back to win 5-2.

After a slow first period against Hungary in the quarterfinals? The U.S. scored nine goals in the second, with Hilary Knight breaking the all-time world championship scoring record.

And when Czechia’s Klára Hymlárová got the puck past American goalie Nicole Hensley in Saturday’s semifinal matchup? Amanda Kessel responded 14 seconds later by rounding out a hat trick.

“I don’t think the bounce back is necessarily an emphasis because that means you have the mindset of being down,” U.S. captain Kendall Coyne Schofield said with a laugh. “But I think there’s just no quit in this group. There’s nothing that can shake this group.”

The Americans defeated Czechia 10-1 to earn a spot in Sunday’s gold medal game, continuing the U.S. team’s streak of competing for gold at every women’s world championship in history. They’ll face the winner in Saturday’s other semifinal (Canada vs. Switzerland).

In addition to Kessel’s hat trick, Taylor Heise and Hilary Knight added two goals a piece, while Hayley Scamurra, Jesse Compher, Caroline Harvey each contributed a single tally.

Heise, who is making her world championship debut in Denmark, leads all skaters with 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists). She is one short of the all-time Women’s Worlds assist record (12), set by American Cindy Curley in 1990.

The rising fifth-year senior at Minnesota said she wasn’t expecting to have such a prolific performance at her first world championships.

“Absolutely not, I was more so focused on getting here