Melodie Daoust scored the winning goal as Canada downed host Finland 4-2 in a women’s hockey game Thursday.
Victoria Bach, Marie-Philip Poulin and Jocelyne Larocque also scored for Canada, while Rebecca Johnston had two assists.
Petra Nieminen and Elisa Hopolainen scored for Finland.
Emerance Maschmeyer stopped 19 shots for Canada, while a busy Meeri Räisänen made 40 saves for Finland.
WATCH | Canada’s Poulin finds back of net against Finland:
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Hockey great Marie-Philip Poulin was Canada’s player of the game in a 4-2 win over Finland. 0:46
The two teams will face off for games Saturday and Sunday in Turku, Finland.
Canada’s three-game series in Finland is part of its preparation for February’s Winter Olympics in Beijing, and also the national team’s first games outside North America since the 2019 world championship in Espoo, Finland.
Twenty-nine women have been centralized in Calgary since July. The 23-player Olympic roster is expected to be announced in late December.
Canada fell 3-2 in a shootout to the United States in the gold-medal game of the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The Finns took the bronze medal.
Daoust of Valleyfield, Que., was Canada’s points leader in August’s women’s world hockey championship in Calgary with six goals and six assists in seven games.
The 29-year-old was named MVP of the tournament, which Canada won with a 3-2 overtime victory over the Americans in the final. Finland won the bronze medal.
After returning from Finland, the Canadian women resume a Rivalry Series with the U.S. on Nov. 21 in Kingston, Ont.
Canada won the first two of nine games by scores of 3-1 and 3-2.
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