Five Goldeneyes Players Bring Olympic Silver Back to Vancouver from Team Canada's 2026 Women's Ice Hockey Tournament
PWHL Vancouver Goldeneyes

Five Goldeneyes Players Bring Olympic Silver Back to Vancouver from Team Canada's 2026 Women's Ice Hockey Tournament

Published on February 19, 2026 under Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL)
Vancouver Goldeneyes News Release


VANCOUVER, BC - Five Goldeneyes players will return to Vancouver with silver medals for Canada following a 2-1 overtime loss to the United States at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

Goldeneyes leading scorer Claire Thompson became the all-time leading scorer among Olympic defenders with 17 career points, surpassing American Angela Ruggiero's record of 15. The Vancouver alternate captain's four points (1G, 3A) at this year's Winter Olympics put her tied for fourth among the tournament's defenders and tied for fifth overall on Team Canada.

Two Canadian Goldeneyes made their Olympic debuts in Milano Cortina: Surrey's own Jenn Gardiner and Toronto's Sophie Jaques, who both recorded their first career Olympic points on February 12 against Finland, with Gardiner scoring the game-winning goal and Jaques assisting on Canada's second goal in a 5-0 win. Jaques finished the tournament with three assists and tied for second on Team Canada in plus/minus with +5.

Playing in her third Olympic Winter Games, Sarah Nurse contributed two assists to become the 11th Canadian woman to record 20 career points at the Olympics, and the eighth to record 15 assists.

Goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer had two starts, three appearances, and two wins for Canada. She led Canada to a 4-0 win over Switzerland for her second career Olympic shutout and earned a 5-1 quarterfinal win over Germany.

North Vancouver's Nina Jobst-Smith scored the first goal of the entire tournament in her Olympic debut for Germany, a 4-1 loss to Sweden on February 5, before playing overtime hero with her game winner against France on February 9. She finished her first Olympic Winter Games with three points while becoming the first German defender to score two goals in a single Olympic tournament. Jobst-Smith led Germany in total ice time (132:40) and shots on net (27), ranking second in minutes per game among all tournament skaters. Germany's Olympic journey ended in the quarterfinals with a loss to Canada.

Michelle Karvinen captained Finland in her fifth Olympic Winter Games, a journey that started in Vancouver in 2010. She finished the tournament tied with Seattle Torrent and American captain Hilary Knight and Nicole Bullo (Switzerland) for the most games played in Olympic women's hockey history with 29. With a primary assist on Finland's third goal against Switzerland on February 10, Karvinen has recorded a point in five different Olympic Winter Games and is one point shy of tying Riikka Sallinen's Finnish record of 25 points. Finland's tournament ended with a 1-0 quarterfinal loss to Switzerland.

Czechia's Tereza Vanišová remains her country's all-time points leader with seven (2G, 5A) across two Olympic appearances, contributing one assist in Milan on Czechia's lone goal against Canada on February 9. Czechia lost 2-0 to Sweden in the quarterfinals.

The Vancouver Goldeneyes will welcome their Olympians back home and return to PWHL action on Sunday, March 1, playing the Toronto Sceptres at the Pacific Coliseum at 1 p.m. PT. It's the first of a five-game homestand stretching from March 1 to 21 with tickets available at vancouvergoldeneyes.com/tickets.

Single-game media credential applications are open here. Media credential requests are due no later than 72 hours before any PWHL or Vancouver Goldeneyes event. Early submission is strongly encouraged. Late applications may not be considered. Completing the credential request form does not guarantee credential approval. Use of a credential issued by the PWHL in its discretion will be subject to terms and conditions.

More information on the PWHL at the Olympic Winter Games can be found at The Ultimate Away Game - PWHL's Olympic Hub.

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Professional Women's Hockey League Stories from February 19, 2026


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