Hayley Scamurra, a native of Williamsville, scored a goal in front of her hometown crowd as the United States women’s national hockey team defeated Canada 6-1 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. The game was part of the Rivalry Series, which features four matchups between the U.S. and Canada ahead of the upcoming Winter Olympics.
Scamurra noted the presence of local youth hockey players during warmups, including members of the Buffalo Bisons team and fans holding signs referencing her role as “Coach Scamurra” with area teams. “I always make it a point to be active in whatever community I’m in, working with the younger generation so they have that visual of what you can be,” Scamurra said. “And so then to do it here in the hometown, representing USA, and so all the little girls in Buffalo can aspire to be that. … It was absolutely incredible. I couldn’t have written it any better, honestly.”
The victory brought Team USA’s record to 2-0 in this year’s Rivalry Series. The first game took place earlier this week in Cleveland, with two additional games scheduled for Canadian cities.
Scamurra had over 100 friends and family members present for her homecoming performance. “Just to have that physical presence of them, the people who have been with me this whole journey and have helped me get to this point, to celebrate with them was unbelievable,” she said.
Other players also returned close to home for Saturday’s contest. Defensemen Haley Winn and Laila Edwards previously played together at Bishop Tierney High School in Rochester. Winn commented on being a role model: “I think it’s everyone’s dream to obviously be a role model. Not only on the world stage, but especially in your community. I feel like that’s so important. I saw a lot of Rochester Americans jerseys in the stands which is super cool to see because that was who I grew up playing with. And it’s awesome to see them on girls teams, because I didn’t always have the opportunity to play for an all-girls team growing up. So, it was awesome to see so many faces with that jersey on.”
Edwards added after scoring Team USA’s third goal: “Buffalo always shows up for women’s hockey.”
Veteran Hilary Knight recorded a hat trick as she prepares for her fifth and final Olympic appearance. Her third goal came late into an empty net as spectators tossed hats onto the ice while chanting “U-S-A.” Knight remarked on playing at home: “Whenever we can play in the United States, it’s really special, we don’t get to play at home very often,” Knight said. “I was curious what the crowd would be like, we’re close to the border a little bit, but our fans always show up, and it’s super special to be able to play in front of them. They don’t get to see us in the Olympic tournaments or the World Championship. And so, to have a rivalry game, an exhibition in their hometown is really special, not one that we take lightly.”
Canadian fans were also present at KeyBank Center despite their team’s loss; Samantha Philp traveled from London, Ontario for the event and reflected on changes within women’s hockey: “I was saying on our way here, growing up we didn’t have women’s hockey, it wasn’t very big,” Philp said. “Seeing these girls that came together and made this league and encourage other young girls from all around that they can do the same thing is really inspiring to me.”
The scoring summary included goals by Hilary Knight (three), Kelly Pannek (one), Laila Edwards (one), Hayley Scamurra (one) for Team USA; Marie-Philip Poulin scored Canada’s lone goal.
