US faces Canada again in women's hockey for Olympic gold

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American assistant captain Hilary Knight calls it "a beautiful rivalry." Canadian captain Marie-Philip Poulin sums it up as "very fun."

Don’t be fooled by the pleasantries.

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One of international sports’ fiercest and longest-running grudge matches will play out for the second time at the Beijing Olympics, with the meeting Thursday between the United States and Canada determining who goes home with gold.

"These are the the games that we live for," U.S. captain Kendall Coyne Schofield said following a 4-1 semifinal win over Finland. "Everyone’s been so resilient through the pandemic with the ups and downs, the cancellations, postponements and finding ways to train, and it’s for this moment. We’re going to empty the tanks, and this is what we came here to do."

The U.S. is the defending Olympic champion after rallying to beat Canada 3-2 in a shootout at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.

United States players gather in front of the net before a women's semifinal hockey game against Finland at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Monday, Feb. 14, 2022, in Beijing.  (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

The Canadians are considered the favorites this time after steamrolling to a 6-0 record and outscoring opponents 54-8, including a 4-2 win over the U.S. in group play.

Canada also had the edge over its cross-border rivals since Poulin scored the gold-medal-winning goal in a 3-2 overtime win over the U.S. at the world championships in August to end the Americans’ streak of five tournament titles. Canada is 5-1-1 in the past seven meetings against the U.S. since.

Overall at the Olympics, which added women's hockey in 1988, Canada is 6-3 against the