The U.S.–Canada rivalry just produced another chapter that will be replayed for years.

In the women’s ice hockey gold-medal game at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, the United States stunned Canada 2–1 in overtime, completing a late comeback that turned a tense final into a full-blown national jolt on both sides of the border.

Canada held the edge for most of the night after Kristin O’Neill struck with a shorthanded goal in the second period, forcing the Americans to chase the game while staring down a locked-in defensive structure and elite goaltending.

Then the clock started to feel like an enemy.

With the U.S. pressing late, captain Hilary Knight delivered the moment that flipped the entire arena—scoring with the extra attacker to tie the game in the final minutes of regulation and force overtime, a goal that also carried major historical significance for her Olympic record book.

Overtime didn’t last long.

Defenseman Megan Keller ended it 4:07 into the extra period, finishing the golden play to trigger an eruption—gloves in the air, players piling over the boards, and Canada frozen in disbelief as another final slipped away in the sport’s fiercest rivalry.

Beyond the medal, the win signals a shifting psychological edge. The Americans framed this as revenge for past heartbreak, and the result reinforces how little separates these teams—until one instant, one rush, one shot rewrites everything.