Poulin scores in return, Canada beats Germany 5-1 in women's Olympic tournament quarterfinal

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MILAN (AP) — Captain Marie-Philip Poulin scored to match an Olympic career goal record in her return to the lineup, and Canada rolled to a 5-1 win over Germany in the quarterfinal round of the women’s hockey tournament at the Milan Cortina Games on Saturday.

Poulin's power-play goal with 4:30 left in regulation was the 18th of her Olympic career, tying the Olympic record held by Hockey Hall of Famer Hayley Wickenheiser. Sarah Fillier had a goal and assist, and Brianne Jenner, Claire Thompson and Blayre Turnbull also scored for the defending Olympic champions. Emerance Maschmeyer stopped 10 shots.

Canada advanced to the semifinals set for Monday and will play the winner of the day’s later quarterfinal between Finland and Switzerland. The top-seeded and tournament-favored Americans will play Sweden, the Group B winner after the Swedes upset Czechia on Friday.

It was the first Olympic meeting between the two nations, while Canada improved to 9-0 overall in international play and have now outscored the Germans by a combined 83-1.

Franziska Feldmeier became the first German player to score against Canada and did so on a shorthanded breakaway 8:42 into the third period after intercepting Renata Fast’s pass. Sandra Abstreiter finished with 38 saves, and looked shaky on two goals.

The Germans showed promise in finishing second in Group B with a 3-1 record, but still have work to do to break into what’s regarded as the top six following their fourth Olympic appearance and first since 2014.

Canada got a boost from Poulin’s return after missing two-plus games with a right knee injury sustained in a 5-1 win over Czechia on Monday.

The 34-year-old player, nicknamed “Captain Clutch,” was eased back into play in being limited to spot shifts and power-play time.

She capped the scoring from a familiar spot — parked in front of the net and redirecting in Fillier's shot.

Poulin showed no signs of being bothered by her knee. She chased down Germany’s Laura Kluge driving in on a shorthanded breakaway five minutes into the game. Poulin clipped Kluge’s helmet with her stick to distract the forward while she got off her shot that was stopped by Maschmeyer.

Canada opened the scoring on its first shot on goal, with Jenner driving the net and redirecting in Emma Maltais’ centering pass 1:40 into the game. Thompson made it 2-0 with 3:19 left in the period by firing a shot from the left point that appeared to knuckle through Abstreiter’s legs. Fillier put Canada up 3-0 when her shot deflected in off Abstreiter’s stick with 2:30 left in the second period.

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