Summarize and humanize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in EnglishČESKÉ BUDĚJOVICE, Czechia — Team USA won the IIHF Women’s World Championship 4-3 in overtime against Team Canada on Sunday.Penn State star forward Tessa Janecke scored the game-winning goal with just under three minutes left in the first overtime period in another thrilling edition of the cross-border rivalry.After the first period ended 0-0, it seemed like it might be another tight contest between the top two teams in the world. But things got wild in the second period with four goals in less than three minutes — Team USA pulled ahead 2-0 in just 30 seconds, and Canada quickly drew even to halt the U.S. momentum.Taylor Heise looked like she put the game away 3-2 in the third period, but Sarah Fillier tied the game with five minutes remaining to set the stage for yet another overtime finale between Canada and the USA.This is Team USA’s second world championship gold medal in three years, after winning in 2023.Here are three takeaways from the game.A wild second periodFor a few minutes in the second period, it looked like we were due for another wild 6-5 overtime game like last year’s finale in Utica, N.Y.U.S. defender Caroline Harvey opened the scoring seven minutes into the frame, capitalizing on some mayhem in front of the net with a perfectly placed shot. Thirty seconds later, Kendall Coyne Schofield chipped a puck deep into Canada’s zone, which Abbey Murphy corralled and put past Ann-Renée Desbiens.
🇺🇸 @usahockey scores twice in 29 seconds to open the gold medal game! ⚡️💪 #WomensWorlds #IIHF pic.twitter.com/i4ussXIVHQ
— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) April 20, 2025With a 2-0 lead, it felt like the U.S. could run away with things. They didn’t.Not even one minute after Murphy’s goal, Danielle Serdachny — who scored the game-winner in overtime at last year’s worlds — cut the lead in half. Jennifer Gardiner tied things 2-2 less than one minute after that.
🇨🇦 @hockeycanada answers back with two goals in 55 seconds! 😮🔥 #WomensWorlds #IIHF pic.twitter.com/gCblh4WYN6
— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) April 20, 2025Canada got a power play opportunity shortly after stealing all the momentum (and then another before the period ended), but when it was all said and done, both teams went to the locker room tied 2-2.All four goals were scored in two minutes and 16 seconds.Aerin Frankel leaves the gameTeam USA’s No. 1 goalie Aerin Frankel left the game with around 15 minutes remaining in regulation after a scary collision with Canada forward Laura Stacey.On the play, Frankel left her crease to play a puck while the U.S. was on the power play. Stacey, one of Canada’s top penalty killers, was chasing the puck down and collided right into Frankel, who stayed on the ice for several very quiet moments in a normally loud Budvar Arena.
Laura Stacey entre SOLIDEMENT en collision avec la gardienne américaine Aerin Frankel ! 😯#ChampionnatduMondedeHockeyFéminin pic.twitter.com/ry5SYNa47b
— RDS (@RDSca) April 20, 2025Frankel, who backstopped a U.S. win at the 2023 worlds, was replaced by Gwyneth Philips, who is playing in her first women’s world championships. Stacey was called for charging on the play, which set up a five-on-three for Team USA, with Sarah Nurse already in the box for elbowing.Heise made quick work of the two-player advantage to give the U.S. a 3-2 lead, which they held until Fillier’s game-tying goal late in the third.Frankel had kept the game close, making 27 saves on 29 shots she faced. In relief, Philips made 17 saves on 18 shots, including all 10 she faced in overtime.The U.S. attackHeading into the gold medal game, Team USA’s scoring efficiency (operating at 9 percent) was a bit of a red flag. So much so that head coach John Wroblewski said “it’s astonishing that we haven’t scored more goals.”On Saturday night in the semis against Czechia, the U.S. only scored two goals on 45 shots. During the quarterfinals, they only scored three goals on 51 shots.In the first period, it looked like there could be more of the same with zero goals on eight shots. More concerning were the Grade-A chances that didn’t even get on net. Late in the period, Canadian defender Claire Thompson served Grace Zumwinkle the puck on a platter, but it never got out of Zumwinkle’s skates, let alone on net.When it mattered most, though, the American’s top young players delivered with four goals on 22 shots in the final two periods and overtime.This story will be updated.(Photo: Petr Skrivanek / CTK via AP Images)
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