Megan Keller deked her way into American sports history lore.
The United States women’s hockey defender was the hero the team needed in a thrilling 2-1 win over Canada in the gold medal game Thursday.
Keller, 29, collected a long pass from Taylor Heise right before the offensive blue line and skated into the zone, dancing around Canadian blueliner Claire Thompson and backhanding a shot that snuck past goalie Ann-Renée Desbiens.
It was a golden goal in every sense.
“I’m lost for words,” Keller told reporters afterward. “This is an incredible feeling. I love these girls so much. This group deserves it. Just the effort and the faith that we kept through this four-year journey is something very special.”
It was her latest starry moment in a career full of them.
College stardom
A Michigan native, Keller committed to Boston College after winning the silver medal at the 2014 IIHF U18 World Championship.
After arriving on the scene in Chestnut Hill, Mass., she immediately made an impact on the Hockey East program.
After she finished her career at the NCAA level (2014-19), Keller led the entire program in goals (45), assists (113) and points (158) for a defenseman.
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On a team level, she helped the Eagles to three Frozen Four berths and one national title runner-up in 2016.
Keller twice won the Cammi Granato Award as the top player in Hockey East, was an AHCA-CCM Women’s University Division I All-American in 2016-17 and was a Patty Kazmaier Award top-three finalist in her senior season after twice getting honored with top-10 finalist picks.
International and pro career
Keller took a leave of absence from BC in 2017-18 to play with Team USA’s Olympic squad which won gold for the first time in 20 years.
She had two assists that time around and added four more at the 2022 Winter Games in which the Americans finished in second behind Canada.
This time around, Keller had three goals and nine points — including a goal and an assist in the gold medal game — to sit tied atop the U.S. leaderboard.
Stateside, Keller is the captain of the Boston Fleet in the PWHL and had five goals and six assists before the Olympic break.
In 2024, she was a 2024 PWHL Defender of the Year finalist.
