Canada’s Marie-Philip Poulin breaks women’s Olympic goals record
One of the greatest players in the history of the game has etched her name in the record books.
On Monday, Canada captain Marie-Philip Poulin scored the 19th goal of her Olympic career, surpassing Hockey Hall of Famer Hayley Wickenheiser for the most goals by a woman at the Winter Games.
OLYMPIC GREATNESS 🐐🍁 MARIE-PHILIP POULIN IS NOW THE ALL-TIME WOMEN’S #WINTEROLYMPICS GOALS LEADER 👑
The goal came early in the second period in Canada’s semifinal against Switzerland. After getting robbed by Swiss netminder Andrea Brandli not a minute before, Poulin took a flimsy shot from the point that bounced by Brandli to give her team a 1-0 lead. She added the 20th goal of her illustrious career just a few minutes later.
It was Poulin’s second goal of these Olympics. The 34-year-old suffered a lower-body injury against Czechia during the group stage, keeping her out of Canada’s disappointing loss to the United States and the team’s preliminary-round finale against Finland. She returned to the lineup for the quarterfinals, scoring her first goal of the tournament to cap off a 5-1 win for the Canadians over Germany.
Poulin’s numbers are certainly down from her incredible performance in Beijing four years ago, when she scored six goals and 11 assists for 17 points, finishing just behind Sarah Nurse, who set a women’s Olympic record with 18 points in a single tournament.
The Quebec native still has work to do in order to have a chance of catching Wickenheiser for the most points by an Olympian in women’s hockey. The three-time gold medalist posted an incredible 51 pointsin 26 games. Poulin ranks second in points, with 38 in 26 games.
Poulin will go down as one of the greatest players in all of hockey, male or female. Her ability to rise to the occasion dates back to her first Olympic appearance in Vancouver, 16 years ago. Since then, she has been a mainstay on the international stage. In her career, she has won three gold medals at the Olympics, four world championships and several other honors along the way. The scary fact is that Poulain has shown no signs of slowing down. Even at her age, many believe she’ll be around when the Winter Games are held in France in four years.