Abbey Murphy Puts on a Show in Gold Medal Game of Euro Hockey Tour

In the final game of the Tampere stop of the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour, Team USA’s so-called US Collegiate Women’s Select Team faced off against a Team Canada also composed of NCAA stars. It was a three period thriller with USA coming away with a 5-3 win and gold.

“This team played gritty all game,” said John Wroblewski, USA’s head coach. “Canada came out swinging but we put our heads down and played our game. Abbey Murphy was a difference maker.”

As fans have come to expect whenever the rival nations meet, both teams came out hard in the first period. The Americans looked more regimented, perhaps owing to the fact that ten of their players competed together in April at the IIHF Women’s World Championships. Though USA controlled much of the play, it was Canada that struck first: Sprung on a partial break, penalty killing Anne Cherkowski was hauled down from behind and awarded a penalty shot. Cherkowski faked to her forehand before roofing a backhand shot over US goalie Ava McNaughton’s glove, to the delight of the Canadian bench. Canada took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.

The Americans came back with a vengeance in the second. Four minutes into the frame, towering defender Laila Edwards sent speedy Lacey Eden in alone on Canadian goalie Éve Gascon. Eden snapped the puck past Gascon’s outstretched glove to knot the score at one apiece. Fewer than two minutes later, the Americans struck again. A quick transition from the forecheck saw Tessa Janecke redirect a Kiara Zanon pass from below the goal line into the Canadian net to give the Americans the lead. The ink had barely dried on the scoresheet before Team USA scored again. In what might be remembered as the nicest play of the tournament, star forward Abbey Murphy collected the puck in her own zone and took off up the right wing. Bearing down on Canadian defender Emma Venusio, Murphy dangled inside and outside, freezing the D before firing a dart of a pass over to teammate Sydney Morrow, who fired the puck past Gascon to give the Americans a 3-1 lead.

In the third period, needing two goals to tie, Canada instead took a pair of penalties. The American power plays, loaded with world class talent, pressed and threatened, but could not beat Gascon to extend their lead. With their goaltender leading from behind, Canada resisted the American onslaught and were finally rewarded for their efforts when Jocelyn Amos, fishing near the American blue line, received and Emmalee Pais pass and went in alone on McNaughton. Amos made no mistake, sniping the puck home to get the Canadians within one. Minutes later, Canadian Alex Law took matters into her own hands, slicing through the neutral zone at full speed before splitting the American D and rifling the tying goal into the back of the net. The goal only seemed to energize the Americans, and none other than Abbey Murphy notched the go-ahead, and eventual game winner barely 90 seconds later. She tipped a Sydney Morrow shot in front, and the puck skipped past Gascon. The Americans added an empty-netter before time expired to win the tournament’s Gold Medal Game 5-3.