There's Still Only One Women's Hockey Game That Matters

The build-up to the women's Olympic gold medal game has begun.

"I'm upset that Canada has been running up the score, especially against the host nation," USA defenseman Angela Ruggiero tells SI.com. "There was no need for that. They're trying to pad their stats."

Canada has defeated Italy 16-0 and Russia 12-0. The U.S. has registered 5-0 and 6-0 wins over Germany and Switzerland.

The Canadians might argue that it's not their job to play down to the opposition. But star forward Hayley Wickenheiser concedes that the blowouts aren't much fun. "I thought it was going to be closer. That's not great hockey,'' she tells TSN.ca. Wickenheiser suggests a mercy rule for international tournaments, ending games when a team takes a ten-goal lead.

It's all discouraging news for women's hockey, which has struggled to establish itself as a true international game.

It's worth noting that lopsided scores were common in the early days of men's hockey, with the rest of the world taking several decades to catch up to Canada. But the early results from Torino suggest that, if anything, the talent gap between North America women and the competition might be widening.