Canada Rallies to Reach Final, 7-3

Hayley Wickenheiser and Jayna Hefford scored on breakaways six seconds apart as Canada rallied from its first deficit of the Salt Lake Games to defeat Finland, 7-3, Tuesday and advance to the gold-medal game.

The victory propelled the seven-time world champions into a rematch with the United States, which defeated Sweden, 4-0, in the other semifinal. The U.S. women won the gold medal in Nagano and beat Canada eight consecutive times in exhibitions leading up to the 2002 Games.

Tuula Puputti stopped 47 shots for Finland, which will play the U.S.-Sweden loser for the bronze. Kim St.-Pierre stopped 15 shots for Canada.

Finland scored with 25 seconds left in the first period--the first goal against Canada in four games at the Olympics--when Tiia Reima beat St.-Pierre after a scramble in front of the net.

Reima made it 2-2 at 2:56 of the second and, less than a minute later, Reima assisted on Katja Riipi’s goal to give Finland a 3-2 lead.

Wickenheiser scored with 3:19 gone in the third to tie the score, 3-3, and Hefford gave the Canadians a the lead for good. Vicky Sunohara, Cassie Campbell and Therese Brisson scored within 97 seconds to make it 7-3.

Russia 5, Germany 0--Tatiana Burina scored twice in the first period to lead Russia to victory in the fifth-place game.

China 2, Kazakstan 1--Hongmei Liu scored the game-winning goal 1:39 into overtime in the seventh-place game.