Canada holds the historical edge in gold medal game meetings with the U.S. Olympics women’s hockey team, going 4-2.
Will recent history change that?
The USA won the team’s preliminary round game, 5-0. Before that, the USA swept the four-game Rivalry Series. It also won the 2025 world championships.
Canada is the reigning Olympic champion after winning in 2022 in Beijing. It also won every Olympics from 2002 to 2014. The USA won the initial game in 1998 and also in 2018. It lost in the 2006 semifinals and won bronze.
Which team will win on Thursday? USA TODAY Network staffers offer their predictions for the USA vs. Canada gold medal game:
Cydney Henderson, USA TODAY
USA 4, Canada 2: Neither Team USA nor Canada has scored more than three goals in their six Olympic gold-medal matches, but the Americans will surpass that mark with all their offensive weapons. Team USA blew out the Canadians 5-0 in the preliminary round. Although I don’t expect a shutout, the U.S. women will be dominant once again and win a gold medal with a two-goal lead.
Mike Brehm, USA TODAY
USA 4, Canada 1: Canada didn’t have Marie-Philip Poulin available in the 5-0 loss to the USA, but the captain and all-time leading Olympic goal scorer will play. Her presence will help the Canadians play better. But that alone isn’t enough. The USA is deep with veterans and productive younger players. Hilary Knight will go home with a gold medal in her fifth and final Olympics.
Jace Evans, USA TODAY
Canada 3, USA 2: One glorious shootout in 2018 aside, the Olympics in the 21st century have generally been a disappointing affair for the USA women’s hockey team. The Americans really haven’t been challenged in this tournament, but the lack of adversity ends up costing them as they fall to Canada in the gold medal game for the fifth time since 2002.
Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press
USA 5, Canada 1: The USA women are playing at an unheard of level, with depth at every position and buoyed by strong leadership. There’s no weaknesses there. They’re so good, sometimes the goalies have to bang their sticks on the ice to keep warm because they see so few pucks. Look for the USA to keep rolling, Hilary Knight to get her record, Abbey Murphy to set an early tone with a physical play and the USA to celebrate a gold medal performance.