The United States women’s hockey team thought it had finished off a 5-1 victory over Finland in their opening game of group play, but as the team celebrated and left the ice, they were told to come back in a bizarre scene.
As it turned out, 5-1 was not the final score of the game. With 2:20 remaining in the contest, Finland forward Susanna Tapani fired a shot in on goal that appeared to hit the post and bounce away.
The referee on the ice waved their arms, signaling that the puck did not go in, and the green light behind the goal flashed, indicating that play needed to continue.
Video of the play ultimately showed that the puck hit off the post, but then went under the crossbar and into the net, giving Finland their second goal of the game.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
Top Olympics Stories - NBC 5
The review began once the play occurred, but the result could not be announced until the next stoppage in play, which happened to be the “end” of the game.
As a result, the goal was added to the tally, and the teams had to return to the ice to play the actual final 2:20 of the contest, which passed without any more goals scored as the United States picked up their first win of the tournament.
For those curious, if another goal had been scored during that time, it would not have counted, as the game would have reset back at the 2:20 mark following the second tally.
Don’t miss the most exciting moments of the Winter Olympics in Beijing! Sign up for our Olympics newsletter.
