The U.S. Women's National Team will square off against Finland today in the semifinals of the 2021 IIHF Women's World Championship. Puck drop is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET at WinSport Arena in Calgary, Alberta. Today's game, along with every U.S. tournament game, will be televised live in the United States on NHL Network.
SERIES vs. FINLAND
The U.S. is 17-1-1-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L-T) all-time against Finland at the IIHF Women's World Championship. With its 3-0 win over Finland in the preliminary round, the U.S. owns a 90-27 scoring differential in 20 WWC matchups against Finland. The U.S. and Finland met in the gold-medal game of the 2019 IIHF WWC, where the U.S. captured gold after an exhilarating shootout finish.
USWNT IN THE SEMIFINALS
The U.S. has only fallen once in the semifinal round of the WWC and that was against Canada on April 10, 2009. Despite a 33-save effort by Molly Schaus, the U.S. was edged by its northern rival, 2-1. Because the U.S. had already earned a bid into the gold-medal game, the loss did not matter. Team USA would go on to claim gold against Canada two days later, winning 4-1.
MAKING HISTORY
Hilary Knight (Sun Valley, Idaho) broke the all-time IIHF Women’s World Championship goal record after scoring a goal against ROC in Game 3 of the preliminary round of the IIHF Women’s World Championship. With an assist on Knight's goal, Brianna Decker (Dousman, Wis.) became the all-time U.S. assist leader in women's world championship play. Knight's goal was her 45th in the women's worlds, eclipsing Hockey Hall of Famer Cammi Granato, while Decker's assist was her 39th, passing Jenny Potter and Krissy Wendell. In the quarterfinal matchup against Japan, Knight tallied three points to pass Hall of Famer Cammi Granato for the American all-time points record at Women's Worlds, scoring two goals and adding an assist to lift Team USA past Japan, 10-2, and advance to the semifinals. Knight currently has 80 WWC points and trails the all-time tournament leader, Canada's Hayley Wickenheiser by six points (86 points).