The U.S. Olympic Women's Ice Hockey Team recorded a 12-1 victory over China here today in its first game of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Jenny Potter (Edina, Minn.) set a U.S. Olympic Women's Ice Hockey Team single-game record with five points (3-2) and also became the United States' all-time Olympic Winter Games career points leader (17GP, 8-18--26).

"It was a great way for us to start the tournament for a lot of reasons," said Mark Johnson, head coach of the U.S. Olympic Women's Ice Hockey Team. "Our young players got to go out for their first Olympic experience in front of a great crowd and face good opposition. I’m encouraged by the way we got started and look forward to our next game against Russia."

Team USA jumped out to a 1-0 lead three minutes into the game thanks to a strong individual effort by Angela Ruggiero (Simi Valley, Calif.). The four-time Olympian intercepted a pass in the neutral zone, skated around a defender and slipped the puck through the pads of China's goalie, Yao Shi.

Kelli Stack (Brooklyn Heights, Ohio) gave the U.S. a 2-0 lead when she buried a centering pass from Julie Chu (Fairfield, Conn.) midway through the first period. Four minutes later, Potter scored her first of the game after collecting a pass from Monique Lamoureux (Grand Forks, N.D.) in the slot and beating Shi to the stick side. Meghan Duggan (Danvers, Mass.) and Potter scored just 21 seconds apart late in the opening frame to give the U.S. a 5-0 lead after one.

Potter notched her third of the game on the power play just one minute into the second with a deflection off a Molly Engstrom (Siren, Wis.) shot. Then, Lisa Chesson (Plainfield, Ill.) made the score 7-0 two minutes later with a high wrist shot over Shi's blocker. Jocelyne Lamoureux (Grand Forks, N.D.) gave the U.S. an 8-0 lead in the period's final minute, maneuvering around a defender and beating Shi between the pads.

Duggan scored her second of the night four minutes into the final frame, knocking a loose puck in the crease past Shi. Engstrom and Natalie Darwitz (Eagan, Minn.) tallied their first goals of the tournament to spot Team USA an 11-0 lead 15 minutes into the third period. Following a Fengling Jin power-play goal for China, Chu completed the game's scoring with a tap-in goal off of a feed from Darwitz.

Team USA goalies Molly Schaus (Natick, Mass.) and Brianne McLaughlin (Sheffield Village, Ohio) combined to stop six shots in the victory, while Shi turned aside 49 shots in the loss.

Team USA will face Russia Tuesday (Feb. 16) in its second preliminary-round game of the tournament. A full U.S. schedule is listed below.