Team USA women's hockey hands Canada its worst loss in Olympics history

The Canadians were beat every step of the way as Team USA delivered a historic beatdown on Tuesday.

A goal in each period saw the United States women's hockey team not only triumph over Canada, but it is one the neighbors to the north may never forget.

'Oh, you think you've done something, that's when the mountain eats you up.'

The 5-0 trounce included two goals from 24-year-old Texan Hannah Bilka and marked the first time ever Team Canada has failed to score a goal in a women's Olympic hockey game.

To add insult to injury, it was also the largest margin of defeat Canada has ever suffered at the hands of Team USA in both men and women's Olympic hockey.

"It's pretty special," said 21-year-old American Kirsten Simms, per NBC. "This group has been unbelievable from the start of the tournament, and I think we displayed that going against our known rivals. It's just good momentum for us going into the playoff rounds."

Simms scored just over a minute into the second period.

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"We're playing a good brand of hockey, and we're just sticking to it," added Ohio native Laila Edwards, who scored in the third. "We're sticking to the principles, and that benefits us. We've got a great group that just gels really well together."

Coach John Wroblewski reminded his team not to get ahead of themselves, despite their record-setting victory. According to ESPN, the coach asked his team, "What's the hardest part of climbing the mountain?"

Wroblewski provided the answer himself:

"Getting home," he said. "If you ever feel good about climbing Mount Everest, it's the way down. Oh, you think you've done something, that's when the mountain eats you up."

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Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images

Team USA will play Italy in the quarterfinals on Friday, February 13, at 3:10 p.m. ET, in what should be an easy win. Italy has over-performed by some accounts, beating France and Japan, both of whom are ranked higher internationally. However, a loss to Germany and a pounding from Sweden have brought them back down to earth, and they likely will not be a problem for the Americans.

ESPN's Emily Kaplan called Team USA a deep and dynamic team with an "extremely balanced attack."

With the Americans rolling all four offensive lines, the hockey insider wrote that the team's mix of fresher faces may be what is giving them an edge. Kaplan noted that Canada has 16 players returning from their 2022 Olympic team.

The two teams could still meet again, but it may have to wait until the finals as Canada's quarterfinal opponent is yet to be determined, and the bracket is not yet fleshed out; Canada still has to play Finland on Thursday.

If Team USA beats Italy, they would move on to the semifinals on February 16, with the bronze and gold medal games airing on February 19.

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