The Ottawa Sun
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U.S. 3 Finland 1
Granato hot for U.S.
October 22, 1996

URL: http://www.canoe.ca/Hockey/oct22_fin_usa.html


Ottawa Sun CORNWALL -- * It's the Women's Three Nations Cup, but there
wasn't anything lady-like about it last night.
 * Team Canada and the U.S. hooked up in some chippy, body-dropping,
cross-border chopping in front of about 1,000 fans at the Cornwall
Civic Centre in a game befitting their bitter rivalry.
 * CANADA 4, U.S. 3
 * CANUCKS UNDEFEATED IN THREE NATIONS EVENT.
 * They hammered each other to a stalemate for 56 minutes until Hayley
Wickenheiser's breakaway goal with 4:15 to go broke a 2-2 tie and sent
Canada to a 4-3 win and a 2-0 record in the double round-robin which
concludes Sunday at the Ottawa Civic Centre.
 * "We've never lost to them and we don't plan on losing to them," Team
Canada coach Shannon Miller said.
 * "(The rivalry) is long-term, on-going and building."
 * There isn't supposed to be any body checking, but try explaining
that to Team Canada's Karen Nystrom as she was picking herself up off
the ice in the second period.
 * Nystrom had burst down the right wing and taken a good shot at
goaltender Erin Whitten. Nystrom drove to the net and stuck her stick
towards Whitten as she appeared to juggle the puck.
 * Whitten poked at her with the butt end of her goalie stick. Then
Team USA blueliner Vicki Movsessian charged in, leveling Nystrom after
the whistle with a thundering hit.
 * "It's just going to get better. You're in for a real treat," said
Nystrom, who scored the first goal of the game.
 * "There's a lot of competition between the two teams because of the
last three world championships and Pacific Rim tournaments. We're
staying on top, it's where we want to be when we're striving for the
Olympics."
 * "They're a bigger team and on the smaller ice surface they like to
throw the body around," Miller added. "We're a little smaller, but we
can play big."
 * The game started out looking like a duel between the two highest
profile goaltenders in women's hockey - Canada's Manon Rheaume and
American Erin Whitten. They've both played pro with the men.
 * But both looked a little shaky last night. Whitten was beaten on a
45-footer by Nystrom which snuck between her pads with 90 seconds to
go in the first period for a 1-0 Canada lead.
 * Rheaume looked weak on Stephanie O'Sullivan's sharp-angled shot -
almost from the goal line - which squeezed between her right pad and
the post to make it 1-1 1:27 into the second.
 * Rheaume did have the save of the game, however, before she was
replaced halfway through the second by Danielle Dube. Rheaume robbed
American Shelley Looney during a power play as she slid to her right
and turned back Looney's point-blank shot from the slot.
 * Team Canada has tonight off while the Americans and the Finnish
national team play at St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y.
 * Games continue through the weekend with the final set for Sunday
afternoon at the Civic Centre.
 * Team Canada's next game is tomorrow night against Finland in
Kingston.

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