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With the weight of the entire nation on her shoulders midway through overtime in the Winter Olympic gold medal game against Canada, American Taylor Heise sent the puck up to Megan Keller and then went straight to the bench.
Heise said she did not see what happened next.
“I gave the puck up and I skated as fast as I could to the bench and when she had already scored I was almost there and then everybody started jumping and that’s when I knew she scored. So I just turned around right away,” Heise recalled in an interview with Pakinomist Digital on Saturday. “After I’ve seen it about 10 times, it’s unbelievable that she did it, and just such a ball game to do in an overtime, but she’s someone who’s so talented and can absolutely do it with grace every time.”
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Taylor Heise #27 of Team United States Laila Edwards #10 of Team USA celebrates after the women’s ice hockey gold medal game between the USA and Canada (2-1 OT) on day thirteen of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics at the Milan Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 20, Milan, Italy. (EyesWideOpen/Getty Images)
It was joy and triumph from there.
Team USA ran over to Keller to celebrate as Team USA took home its first gold medal in women’s ice hockey since 2018 and just the third overall in team history at the Olympics.
“It was definitely a relief,” Heise said of the moment she was able to throw her gloves in the air and hit the ice in celebration. “I think when I was able to throw down the gloves and do all that and get to celebrate with the girls, I just thought relief in the best way, not relief that we didn’t believe we could do it, but relief that we were done and we finally finished the job and climbed Mount Everest and did what we had to do.
“Just an incredible feeling and it’s been super fun to enjoy it. And I think today has been the first day where I can just relax and take a second to really bask in the glory that we’ve created for ourselves here, and I’m super excited to live in it, and those are definitely moments that I want to have for a lifetime.”
One moment that Heise suggested stood out to her was the ability to hear “The Star-Spangled Banner” play after the team received the gold medal.
She mentioned the importance of it in her postgame media availability with reporters Thursday and opened up about it again with Pakinomist Digital.
USA’s Grace Zumwinkle, left, and Taylor Heise celebrate after the women’s ice hockey victory ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
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“Playing for your country and the pride of the place you live in is pretty amazing, and to wear the American badge on your chest every day, that’s something you don’t want to take for granted every day,” she said. “I think sometimes things can get repetitive. We’ve been here for 22 days and sometimes you have to remember why you do what you do and remember hockey is a kid’s game and it’s just a fun sport to be a part of and to represent your country at the highest level there is, it’s pretty incredible.
“And having the full support of everyone back home, that’s probably been my favorite part. The messages we’ve gotten from former alumni and people who played on the team and just people back in the States, that’s definitely been one of my favorite parts because they definitely see the talent and joy that we played with, for sure.”
Heise will capture the unforgettable moment in the next few days, but her season is far from over.
She returns to the ice for the Professional Women’s Hockey Leage (PWHL) Minnesota Frost. She is one of six Frost players who were on Team USA. The team will return to action on March 1 against Montreal Victoire.
With millions of people watching the gold medal game, Heise suggested she was sure the PWHL was picking up some new fans.
USA’s Grace Zumwinkle, left, and Taylor Heise (27) celebrate after winning the women’s ice hockey gold medal against Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
“I wanted to take a week off in Mexico, but I understand that’s not possible,” Heise joked. “But yeah, we’re all excited to get back and get going again with the PWHL. It’s definitely a league that’s given us a platform to play in and kind of look back at the WNBA and how they started. It’s a consistent grind and it’s not just you go from here to here in two days.
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“With our expansions and everything, it’s definitely been a tough process for a lot of people, moving teams and stuff, but I just think, you know, 7.7 million people that showed up for that gold medal game, which is great, by the way, I just think it’s pretty special because I think we’ve got a lot of new fans. Whether you’re into fans of hockey or now, and realize you’re playing hockey in hockey. professional league It’s pretty special, and I expect we have a few more fans who show up to our games and decide they want to be PWHL fans in the future.”
