U.S. Olympic Women¹s Ice Hockey Team Opens XX Olympic Winter Games With 6-0 Win Over Switzerland
Feb. 12, 2006
TORINO, Italy -- Jenny Potter (Edina, Minn.) had four points (1-3) and Krissy Wendell (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) had two goals as the U.S. Olympic Women¹s Ice Hockey Team defeated Switzerland 6-0 in the first game of competition tonight. Chanda Gunn (Huntington Beach, Calif.) faced nine shots and recorded the shutout in her Olympic debut.
"I think it was the type of first game we wanted to have. We controlled the puck the way we wanted to," said Katie King (Salem, N.H.). ³Obviously we didn¹t start putting a lot of pucks in until the third period but we held them off pretty well and kept the puck in their zone pretty much the whole time. I don¹t think we were ever really worried.²
Team USA got on the board at 2:38 of the first session with the teams playing four-on-four hockey. Katie King potted a one-timer from the top of the crease after Potter fed her with a pass from the back of the net.
At 12:27 of the second period, with the USA down two players, Tricia Dunn-Luoma (Derry, N.H.) forced a turnover at center ice and carried the puck in to beat Swiss goaltender Patricia Elsmore-Sautter five-hole.
At 7:53 of the third, Wendell took a feed from Angela Ruggiero (Harper Woods, Mich.) and re-directed it to the high far corner for the 3-0 USA advantage. Natalie Darwitz (Eagan, Minn.) upped the U.S. lead less than three minutes later when she put in her own rebound from the doorstep. Wendell struck again at 13:19 when she skated through the defense and passed to Potter who fed it back for an easy tap-in. Potter wrapped up the scoring with a power play goal at 18:50.
Notes: Team USA outshot Switzerland 56-9 in the game ... First Lady Bush attended the second period with former NFL star Herschel Walker ... The USA killed six penalties in the second period...Team USA has won three consecutive Olympic opening games.
GAME SUMMARY
Scoring By Period
USA 1-1-4 -- 6
SUI 0-0-0 -- 0
First Period Scoring: 1, USA, Ka.King (Potter), 2:38; Penalties: SUI, Kunzle (high-sticking), 1;18; USA, Darwitz (slashing), 2:20; SUI, Ju.Marty (holding the stick), 6:48; SUI, Lehmann (elbowing), 10:11; SUI, Bullo (body-checking), 18:56.
Second Period Scoring: 2, USA, Dunn-Luoma (unassisted), 12:27 (sh). Penalties: USA, Hagerman (interference), 1:15; USA, Resor (interference), 10:22; USA, Wall (roughing), 11:00; USA, Ruggiero (interference); 11:56; USA, Darwitz, (charging), 15:41; USA, Wall (charging), 16:44; SUI, Diaz (interference), 16:46.
Third Period Scoring: 3, USA, Wendell (Ruggiero, Potter), 7:53; 4, USA, Darwitz (Parsons), 10:33; 5, USA, Wendell (Potter), 12:40; 6, Potter (Ruggiero), 18:50 (pp). Penalties: USA, Potter (slashing), 0:23; SUI, Cattaneo (tripping), 5:52; USA, Kennedy (body-checking), 13:19; SUI, Leuenberger (tripping), 17:01.
Shots By Period 1 2 3 Total USA 22 13 21 56 SUI 3 3 3 9Power Play: USA 1-7; SUI 0-9Goaltending (SH-SV) 1 2 3 Total USA, Gunn 3-3 3-3 3-3 9-9 SUI, Elsmore-Sautter 22-21 13-12 18-22 50-56
Penalties: USA 9-18; SUI 7-14
Officials: Referee-Katerina Ivicova; Linesmen-Marina Konstantinova, Kim Robichaud
Attendance: 2,900
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