USA’s Brianna Decker will miss the rest of the Beijing Olympics with a leg injury
The United States women’s hockey team was dealt a major blow on the first day of action at the Beijing Olympics.
Forward Brianna Decker was stretchered off of the ice in the first period of the team’s tournament-opening game against Finland on Thursday after being tripped from behind by defender Ronja Savolainen. Decker’s leg bent awkwardly as she fell to the ice and she was visibly in a tremendous amount of pain.
USA Hockey confirmed after the game that Decker will miss the remainder of the tournament, according to Erica L. Ayala.
American Brianna Decker stretchered off in Olympic hockey opener after the Finland player does the Subban slewfoot. ((Caution)) the sounds are haunting. pic.twitter.com/khM1mpgK71
— David 🔹 (@DaveyUpper) February 3, 2022While the United States ultimately picked up a 5-2 victory over Finland, losing a star player in Decker is a massive blow to the team’s chances of repeating as Olympic gold medalists.
The U.S. women’s national team defeated Canada at the Pyeongchang Games in 2018 to capture their first gold medal since Nagano in 1998. Canada won gold in Salt Lake City in 2002, Turin in 2006, Vancouver in 2010 and Sochi in 2014.
Decker, a three-time Olympian, is widely considered to be one of the top women’s hockey players in the world. The 30-year-old has made 146 appearances for the U.S. national team over her career, scoring 81 goals and 170 points.
Filling her role on the team is going to be a challenge, as Team USA’s coaches rely heavily on Decker to play a two-way game as the team’s top center. A player to watch will be 24-year-old Abby Roque, who’s playing in her first-ever Olympics.
Losing Brianna Decker is significant, but the good news is that Abby Roque jumped into her spot and provided very similar attributes. Can't replace Decker's leadership and experience. One of the truly elite players in the game.
— Chris Peters (@chrismpeters) February 3, 2022The United States didn’t bring any alternates beyond their 23-player roster to Beijing, but general manager Katie Million said that the team has a small window to bring in alternate players if needed.
Next up, the United States will continue its group stage play on Saturday at 8:10 a.m. ET when they take on the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC). They’ll then play Switzerland on Sunday at the same time.
The big game that everyone has circled on their calendar is Monday at 11:10 p.m. ET, as the United States will take on their bitter rivals from Canada.
Team Canada won its opening game on Thursday as well, handily taking down Switzerland by a score of 12-1. Canadian forward Melodie Daoust left the game after being checked hard into the boards by Switzerland’s Sarah Forster.