In the third game of the Olympic ice hockey tournament in Milan, the German women's ice hockey team defeated France. Coach Jeff MacLeod's team won 2-1 (1-0, 0-0, 0-1, 1-0) in overtime in front of 3.632 spectators at the Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena. Laura Kluge and Nina Jobst-Smith scored the goals. The lineup remained unchanged from the game against Japan, with Sandra Abstreiter starting in goal.

The first period belonged to the German women, who scored late in the game. Four power plays allowed them to take control and pull ahead in the shot count. Nevertheless, the French team gave their opponents little room for dangerous scoring opportunities. It wasn't until 34 seconds into the period that they failed to notice the wide-open Kluge while shorthanded, and she converted Daria Gleißner's cross-ice pass with a one-timer to give the French a 1-0 lead at the intermission.

The second period also saw a hard-fought game, but no further goals were scored. For much of the time, the German team dominated the offensive zone. Around nine minutes into the second period, Kluge had the best opportunity to score the second goal. France, in turn, launched several counterattacks, but were unable to maintain control of the German zone. A backhand shot from Jule Schiefer five minutes before the intermission hit the post, leaving the teams heading into the locker room with the score unchanged.

The French had the better start to the final period, spending more time in the offensive zone for the first time in the game. A penalty against Celina Haider further increased the pressure on Abstreiter in the German goal. However, she was helpless in the 49th minute when Estelle Duvin slipped the puck through her legs after a botched German offensive break. Another power play for Team Germany with about seven minutes remaining remained scoreless, as did the rest of the period.

The extra point had to be decided in overtime, which Germany secured through a goal by Jobst-Smith (62nd minute).

The women's ice hockey team's next opponent in the final preliminary round game is the host team from Italy. The game will take place tomorrow, Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at 16:40 p.m. in the Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena.

Statistics for the #GERFRA match

Official IIHF statistics: Game Stats #GERFRA

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Reactions to the game #GERFRA

Women's national coach Jeff MacLeod: "We're delighted with our second win of the tournament! Of course, we would have loved to take all three points today and reward ourselves for our many offensive efforts during regulation time. We played well throughout the entire game and created a clear advantage in scoring opportunities. Defensively, we allowed the French few chances. We're seeing improvement from the entire team compared to our last game and we're continuing to grow as a unit. Now we're preparing intensively for our final preliminary round game and will analyze tonight's match. Tomorrow we need to bring the same energy to the ice to be successful against Italy as well."

Forward Nicola Hadraschek-Eisenschmid: "We put in a good team performance today and dominated our opponents for long stretches, but we need to work on our finishing. We had over 40 shots, so we should have scored more goals. Even with such dominance, it's always possible to concede a goal and lose the game despite a good performance. Nevertheless, we're looking ahead and want to take the positives from this match and address the areas where we didn't play well today. We're looking forward to tomorrow and are excited for the game against the hosts!"

Olympics 2026: German women win against France 2-1 after extra time

Statistics for the #GERFRA match

Reactions to the game #GERFRA