Hilary Knight key in US win at Sochi women's hockey

SOCHI, Russia: Hilary Knight scored 53 seconds into the opener of the Olympic women´s hockey tournament Saturday, and Jesse Vetter needed only 14 saves to lead the United States to a 3-1 victory over Finland.

Kelli Stack and Alex Carpenter also scored for the Americans, who avoided a repeat of Finland´s upset at the Four Nations Cup in Lake Placid, N.Y., in November.

Finnish goalie Noora Raty made 58 saves in that one, but the three-time Olympian could stop just 40 of 43 U.S. shots at the Shayba Ice Arena.Susanna Tapani scored a power play goal for Finland with 4:38 to play in the game to make it 3-1. (AP)