Canada play for gold

At the same time, it's motivated me tremendously. The United States and the Canadian women's hockey teams seem perpetually on a crash course to collide in the gold medal match. The Americans have won the last three world championships.

Sarah Murray, head coach of the unified Korean women's hockey team, wipes away tears after her team's final game at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics against Sweden at Kwandong Hockey Centre in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, on February 20, 2018.

Now only South Korea can decide if hockey truly takes root and the nation becomes a regular on the worldwide stage - the women, sure, but also the South Korean men's team, which also made a somewhat quieter Olympic debut.

And yes, the Americans understand the United States-Canada playing for gold is what everyone expects to see.

Team USA has one more game to win before a potential gold-medal confrontation with Canada.

The Canadian couple took the ice one last time and produced a dramatic interpretation of “Moulin Rouge, ” flawlessly executing their four-minute program that earned them the gold medal in ice dancing on Tuesday.

Neither team found the net in overtime as the contest went to a shootout, with the US drawing first blood when Gigi Marvin scored on the first shot of the tiebreaker.

"We're in South Korea, and it's 2018 and you want a different result", USA coach Robb Stauber said. "It's gone into overtime". I think we've gotten fantastic goaltending.

Both sides view parts of the past differently, perhaps not surprisingly, burying the pain and clinging to the hope.

Canada coach Laura Schuler went back to her when the game remained tied after the original five shootout rounds.

The Canadians earned a spot in the final by beating the Olympic Athletes from Russian Federation 5-0 in the other semifinal. Asked this week about the relevance of 2014, Amanda Kessel, the United States' 26-year-old forward who's playing in her second Winter Games, said, "Tough to say". Kind of put that in our past at this point.

Ben Scrivens started the game for Canada, but gave way to Kevin Poulin at 4:17 of the second period after a crushing O'Dell check sent a Finnish player flying into the Canadian goaltender.

"I think we left the locker room feeling pretty good about it", said forward Monique Lamoureux-Morando, another American trying to add gold to her collection of Olympic silvers. Kunlun Red Star, featuring Finnish goalie Noora Raty, is an expansion team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League.

Canada had Shannon Szabados in goal for her third Olympic gold medal game, and her teammates made her job very easy by keeping the puck in front of Rooney for most of the first period by dictating play.

The Americans opened these games a 2-1 loss to Canada wrapping up pool play. The United States, on the other hand, might have a better collection of players this time around. "I mean, why not two women's teams, right?"

"This is something we have worked hard for all year and it comes down to one game and it is going to be the better team that comes out on top and there is no doubt in my mind that we are going to be ready for whatever it takes". "You have to be at your best to be close with this many great skaters". "This is the game we've been dreaming of and to have another opportunity to get back here, it's huge".

The American squad has spent four years talking about the Olympics in the future tense. On Thursday morning in Pyeongchang, they can't re-write history but they certainly can turn the page on their own. "So we obviously have a lot on the line, mostly pride". "I keep pinching myself".

"We haven't scored almost as much as we'd like, but our hope is that if we keep doing the right things and creating the opportunities that they will come", Stauber said. "We wanted gold but didn't get it".

This article was written by Rick Maese for The Washington Post.