Canada scored early and played perfectly with the lead the rest of the way, defeating Germany 5-1 in the quarter-finals to book a date in the semis which will be played on Monday. This marked the first time these teams have played in the Olympics.

Germany’s Olympic tournament is over. They finish in 7th place.

"Every game we learn more and more about ourselves and more about what we need to do to be successful," said forward Emily Clark. "At times, that comes when we're not doing the right things, and we're usually rewarded when we are doing the right things."

The game saw the return of Canada’s captain, Marie-Philip Poulin, who had missed the two previous matches with a leg injury. She showed no signs of limitations in her skating and played with her familiar intensity. And, she scored a goal in the third period, her first of the tournament and 18th career Olympic goal, tying compatriot Hayley Wickenheiser for most all time.

"She's such a gamer," said longtime teammate Clark of her captain. "She does whatever it takes to be ready and to do everything she can for this team. She doesn't think too much about [records]. She just wants to play the right way. She has a lot of heart."

"I think we did a good job," said German Jule Schiefer. "We fought hard. I thought their first two goals were unlucky on our side, and if they hadn't scored those two, I think it would have been a different game. They're a good team, but I thought we did a good job skating and getting pucks to the net."

Canada got on the board early off the rush. Emma Maltais moved the puck down the left wing, watching Brianne Jenner all the while head to net. At that magic moment, Maltais made the pass and Jenner tipped the puck past Sandra Abstreiter at 1:40.

Germany came close to tying it a few minutes later, but Poulin showed why she wears the “C”. Renata Fast was stripped of the puck at the German blue line by a determined Laura Kluge, tied for second in tournament scoring with seven points. Kluge raced down the ice on a breakaway, but Poulin hustled back and got in her way just enough to prevent a clear shot.

Canada got a second goal late in the period on a shot Abstreiter would love to have back. Claire Thompson’s quick snapper from the point skipped through the blue ice and fooled the goalie, the puck bouncing between her pads at 16:41 to make it a 2-0 game.

Wave after wave of Canadians came at the Germans during the second period, and Abstreiter held the fort nicely as she faced 17 shots, many tough chances. Emerance Maschmeyer fielded only three long-range pucks as she watched the action from the other end of the ice. 

Natalie Spooner had one such chance, taking a feed from Jenner, but Abstreiter got her pad down to prevent the goal. Poulin, Daryl Watts, and Sarah Fillier all had good chances to score, and finally on a late power play they made it 3-0 on an unlucky moment from Abstreiter again.

Fillier tried to centre the puck from the corner of the rink, but it glanced off Abstreiter’s blocker and in at 17:30. The Canadians added a fourth goal just 38 seconds into the third. Blayre Turnbull collected a loose puck at centre and went in on goal with Laura Stacey, but when Katarina Jobst-Smith covered Stacey, Turnbull drove in and slid the puck between the goalie's pads. 

Fast's rough day continued during a Canada power play. She gave up the puck at the Germany blue line, and Franziska Feldmeier raced down the ice. She lost control of the puck for a second but managed to push it over the line from in close at 8:42, making it a 4-1 game.

This was the first ever goal for Germany against Canada in senior women's play. They have lost all six Women's Worlds games by a combined score of 63-0.

"We've done a better job the last two games getting pucks to more dangerous areas," Clark noted. "It's hard to score goals if you're not getting shots and getting to the front of the net. It's all about playing the right way, no matter who you're playing."