TEMPE, Ariz. — Hilary Knight (Sun Valley, Idaho) tallied a goal and an assist to help lift Team USA past Canada, 3-1, in the opening game of the 2023-24 Rivalry Series in Tempe, Arizona on Wednesday.

Team USA scored two unanswered goals in the third period and goaltender Aerin Frankel kept Canada’s offense at bay with 35 saves on the night.

“Aerin was sharp and I really liked how we responded and learned some lessons, especially on that goal against,” said John Wroblewski (Neenah, Wis.), head coach of the U.S. Women’s National Team. “I thought our special teams were solid and we had some awesome efforts from Hilary Knight once again.”

Midway through the first period, Abby Roque (Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.) forced a turnover deep in Canada’s zone and directed the puck to Britta Curl (Bismark, N.D.) as she came down from the slot. Curl fired a shot but was denied by Canada’s goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer.

Team USA then received a pair of back-to-back powerplay opportunities but were unsuccessful on the advantage. Frankel stunned Canada with a glove save on a shorthanded two-on-one to keep the game scoreless.

Fresh off its first penalty kill of the night, Team USA took the lead when Knight found the back of the net with eight seconds remaining in the first period. Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park, Ill.) drove hard into Canada’s zone and put a shot on net for Knight to collect as she came down the slot and slipped the puck past Maschmeyer on the backhand.

Brianne Jenner got Canada on the board at 12:32 in the second period to tie the score 1-1 after she capitalized on a rebound. 

Taylor Heise (Lake City, Minn.) found the back of the net at 4:28 in the final frame to give Team USA a 2-1 lead. Rory Guilday (Minnetonka, Minn.) fired a shot from the point and created a rebound for Knight on the edge of the crease. She fed a no-look pass across the crease, catching the goaltender off guard and leaving Heise with an empty net.

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