Ice hockey fans packed the Clark Gillies Arena in Dix Hills on Thursday to watch Team USA face off against Canada in the gold medal matchup.

Young ice hockey players, like Emmanuelle Stein and Ashley Mehlrose, of Cold Spring Harbor, have always dreamed of being on the USA women's hockey team.

Both have been playing ice hockey for almost their whole lives.

"It's really cool. I hope I make it there one day," Stein said.

"I like playing defense because I guess when you get to take the puck away from the best player on the other team, it's kind of fun," Mehlrose said.

The girls and dozens of other fans packed the arena to watch the game.

"Every four years, when this rivalry is highlighted at the Olympics, it's an amazing surge on registration for USA Hockey and to see more girls getting involved in the game," says Rylan Kearney, director of Team Long Island Dani.

She says it's special to see how quickly the sport becomes important to young players.

"It's awesome. Not only if you see it, you can see it, but these girls know that if they work hard and if they put in the time that they're going to be able to continue to compete at a higher and higher level," Kearney said.

Athletes say it's inspiring to see the USA women's team make it to a gold medal Olympic game.

"I think it's really fun because there's not many girls out there who play ice hockey and it's just a really tough sport," says Stein.

It was a happy ending for attendees, as Team USA defeated Canada, 2-1, in an overtime thriller to take home the gold medal.