In its first game without an injured veteran, some new blood stepped up to keep the offense coming for the U.S. women’s hockey team.

Three different first-time Olympians scored to lift Team USA to a 5-0 win over the Russian Olympic Committee team on Saturday night in Beijing.

Team USA moved to 2-0 in preliminary round play and will face Switzerland on Sunday.

It was the Americans’ first game without first-line center Brianna Decker, the team’s assists leader in the 2018 games, who reportedly suffered a tournament-ending broken ankle in the opener on Thursday. In her absence, Savannah Harmon, Jesse Compher and Grace Zumwinkle each scored their first Olympic goal, with Team USA pouring in three goals in the third period to cruise to the win.

“There’s no replacing Brianna Decker with one individual player,” coach Joel Johnson told reporters. “But we can replace her and what she does well with a lot of different people. And so that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

Russia, the fourth-place finisher in 2018, won its Olympics opener against Switzerland on Thursday, but was still shorthanded after a COVID-19 outbreak cut into its roster. The team lost six players to the virus, including captain Olga Sosina, and began the week in isolation before being cleared to hit the ice.

Harmon got the scoring going on the power play at 12:29 of the first period. The Clarkson product, a defender, received a slick backhand pass from Hilary Knight and one-timed it in for the 1-0 lead.

“I think Savannah’s just a really gifted, offensive, instinctual player,” Johnson said. “So when she sees an opportunity to go to the net or make a play or shoot the puck, she sees it in the way that not a lot of people do.”

The duo then connected again to put USA up 2-0 midway through the second period. This time, it was the veteran Knight redirecting a shot from the point by Harmon for her seventh career Olympic goal.

Zumwinkle made it 3-0 early in the third period on a perfect setup from Dani Cameranesi. Compher then got a wrister through minutes later to push the lead to 4-0 before veteran Alex Carpenter, who scored two goals in the opener, finished off the scoring by cleaning up a rebound to make it 5-0.

“Their goaltender [Maria Sorokina] played pretty well tonight. She was big for them, and we just had to find a way,” Knight said. “It doesn’t always look pretty. It’s great to kind of learn how to work our way through these different issues, whatever dilemma that may present during a game.”

Goalie Maddie Rooney handled the opener for Team USA, but Nicole Hensley got between the pipes Saturday and recorded the shutout, stopping all 12 shots she faced in net.

“They made it a really hard game, really frustrating for us,” Hensley said. “And I think for us, a little adversity is not a bad thing in a tournament like this to have to get through that. If anything, it’s just going to bring us closer together.”

After watching the game on crutches, Decker took to social media to thank fans for their support with an encouraging message.

“I would like everyone to know that I am in good hands and have a incredible staff that is taking great care of me,” Decker wrote in an Instagram post, with a picture of her on a training table and her left ankle wrapped. “Being surrounded by my sisters is exactly where I want and need to be and know that the road to recovery has already begun due to their friendship and the significant love we share as a team. I am excited to remain here with the team and help any imaginable way to help to accomplish the original goal what we have set out to achieve!”