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The U.S. women’s hockey team improved to 2-0 at the 2026 Cortina Olympics in Milan on Saturday.
Team USA captain Hilary Knight scored for the second straight game, tying the U.S. Olympic record in the Americans’ 5-0 rout of Finland. Her 14 career Winter Olympic goals match the total by Natalie Darwitz and Katie King.
The Americans wore down an ailing Finland team, extending Finland’s winless Olympic record against the United States to 0-11. Vice President JD Vance and his family attended and cheered on the tournament favorite Americans.
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U.S. players celebrate after defeating Finland in Group A of women’s ice hockey during the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milan Rho Ice Hockey Arena on February 7, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Geoff Burke/Imagn Images)
Team USA defender Megan Keller had a goal and two assists, while Alex Carpenter, Taylor Heise and Abbey Murphy also scored. Aerin Frankel stopped 11 shots for her first shutout in just her second career Olympic game.
The Finns returned to the ice as a full team for the first time since last training together on Tuesday. That night, four players developed symptoms of norovirus. Two days later, Finland’s 23-man roster was down to eight forwards and two goaltenders, prompting Olympic officials to postpone the team’s tournament opener against Canada until February 12.
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On Friday, coach Tero Lehtara promised his team would play against the Americans, even if it meant having at least five forwards and a goalkeeper. After canceling their morning skate on Saturday, the Finns took the ice six hours later with a total of 22 players.
U.S. players celebrate defeating Finland in Group A of women’s ice hockey during the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milan Rho Ice Hockey Arena on February 7, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Geoff Burke/Imagn Images)
Goalkeeper Sanni Ahola stopped 44 shots overall and kept the Finns in the game through a first period where she stopped 14 of 15 shots. Carpenter was the only one to beat her, scoring with a one-timer from the slot on a power-play goal with just under five minutes left in the period.
Vance sat next to YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul at the Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena.
Vance and his family entered during halftime at the end of the first period, with the U.S. leading 1-0. Paul joined them soon after. Paul’s fiancee, Jutta Leerdam, is a speed skater and competes for her native Netherlands at the Winter Games.
US Second Lady Usha Vance wore a sweatshirt with “USA” in large letters.
Among those also seated near Vance were 2010 figure skating gold medalist Evan Lysacek and hockey’s twin sisters, Hall of Famers Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Monique Lamoureux-Morando. They were members of the US gold medal winning team at the 2018 Winter Games.
