Women's Hockey All-Stars Feeling Grateful Heading Into Rivalry Rematch

Hilary Knight understood the assignment.
After arriving in Pittsburgh on Friday ahead of the Rivalry Rematch on Saturday, she took to social media to send out an important message:
"Confirming. I am in Pittsburgh and I have ordered Primanti bros," the Team USA hockey legend posted from her Twitter account, @hilaryknight.

A few hours later, the U.S and Canadian women's hockey all-stars took in Pittsburgh's 5-2 win over Vegas on Friday from neighboring suites at PPG Paints Arena. After the game, Bryan Rust - wearing a baseball cap with the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association logo - headed out of the interview room following his media availability, he walked past Jeff Carter...who was also repping some PWHPA merch.
"Nice shirt," Rust said with a grin.
The guys were showing their support ahead of tomorrow afternoon's matchup, which is being put on by the Penguins and the PWHPA and will feature some of the most elite hockey players from the two countries following Canada's 3-2 win in the Olympic gold medal game last month in Beijing.
"They're really good players and they're very competitive, so I would encourage people to come out and watch on Saturday," Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said. "I'm looking forward to the game myself. I just think it's just a great event. I think it's great for hockey, and it's great for women's hockey."
While it's technically an exhibition game, that's not necessarily how any of the players from one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports see it.
"Even though we have that camaraderie and are friends off of the ice, that competitive instinct kicks in, and it gets pretty fierce," Canada's Sarah Nurse said. "Even though we were sitting across from them in the box tonight, you look over and it's like, we're going to be back in a game tomorrow. So it's pretty exciting, and it's going to be awesome for everybody to watch."
But despite the inevitable intensity, there is a certain lightness and celebratory feel that surrounds this contest with how much it means on so many levels. Starting with the fact that this Rivalry Rematch is the first time since women's hockey was introduced as an Olympic sport in 1998 that the teams are playing so soon after the tournament.
"To continue the momentum, to make sure women's hockey doesn't die, to answer those questions of 'when can I watch you next?' - so often we never had that answer," Team USA captain Kendall Coyne Schofield said. "So to be able to say here, tomorrow night, in Pittsburgh - whether you are watching in Canada or the United States - you get to watch women's hockey again is incredible. To be on this platform, on this stage, for the rematch - it obviously brings a lot of eyeballs."
It's also the first time that the players' support systems - their family, friends and loved ones - will get to see them play in person in a long time. Kendall joked that she thought her husband - Los Angeles Chargers offensive lineman Michael Schofield - wasn't going to have anyone to hang out with before the game, but ended up being blown away by the amount of people who have congregated in Pittsburgh.
"I don't even know where he's at. He's having a great time," Coyne Schofield said with a laugh. "They couldn't be in Beijing with any of us. Even throughout the year, whether the games were in Canada or the U.S., it was hard for our families to travel one way or the other. This is very unique and one of the only opportunities they've seen us play in the last few years.
"It was a quick turnaround from the Olympics, but it's even more special to have our families, our friends, our loved ones, some people's kids - I think it shows what our future may look like."
And speaking of the future, Coyne Schofield said at the end of the day, it's about inspiring the next generation.
She and Knight, along with many of their peers, looked up to women like USA's Cammi Granato and Canada's Jayna Hefford - both members of the Hockey Hall of Fame - who will be behind the benches as guest coaches for their respective countries.
"Now, for us to be able to stand on their shoulders is so monumental," Knight said. "So to have that spark and see those smiles and to know that the sport is going to be in a better position in their hands than it was in ours moving forward… it is just a lot of joy and gratefulness."