When you look up Megan Keller, her listed position is defender.

But she pulled off one of the nastiest moves you’ll ever see on the ice in overtime of the Olympic women’s hockey gold medal match against Canada on Thursday to hit an all-time game winning goal, giving the U.S. a 2-1 victory.

If this was basketball, they’d say she crossed her defender up. Football, maybe they’d say she broke her ankles. Either way, the defender hit the deck and Keller hit the dagger.

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The goal secured just the third Olympic gold medal for the U.S. women’s hockey program and its first since 2018.

And for the Boston Fleet captain, it’s an instant classic moment that will be remembered in U.S. hockey lore for a long time. Even if she didn’t have much of an explanation for how she pulled it off.

“I wasn’t really thinking or planned anything, just trying to take what was given,” Keller said after the game.

In a tournament that the U.S. had dominated pretty much throughout, Thursday’s matchup was maybe the first time that coming home with anything but gold seemed like a possibility for the Americans. The previous six games had all been blowout victories, including a 5-0 shutout of the Canadians last week.

So when the U.S. trailed 1-0 with just over two minutes to go in regulation, it was a rare moment of desperation. Seeking a boost, the U.S. pulled Fleet goalie Aerin Frankel to get an extra skater on offense. And that’s when former Fleet captain Hilary Knight hit the game-tying goal.

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The goal gave the Americans the last extra gasp of breath it needed to stay alive for an extra period of hockey. And it gave Knight the most ever Olympic goals by an American women’s player. She said after the game that’s when she knew the U.S. was going to win the game.

“Obviously, we peppered their goaltender a lot and picked up momentum throughout the game, but you never want to run out of time, especially with a great team,” Knight said. “And so to find the back of the net, I was like, 'Here we go. This is ours.’”

The win gave Keller her second gold medal, but it was bigger than just her. Her Fleet teammates Frankel and Haley Winn were both playing in their first Winter Olympics and now go home with championship hardware. As will North Reading native Alex Carpenter, who is taking home her first gold after being a two-time silver medalist with Team USA.

Northeastern alums Kendall Coyne Schofield, Gwyneth Philips and Hayley Scamurra were also part of the roster, as were Hannah Bilka and Cayla Barnes, who both spent time at Boston College.

Keller wasn’t the only member of the Fleet to hit a medal-securing goal on Thursday. Alina Müller hit an overtime goal against Sweden in bronze medal game to give her native Switzerland the third-place medal.

Now, Keller, Müller and the rest of the Fleet will return to their home waters with a good chunk of the PWHL season remaining. But pro hockey will come soon enough. For now, securing some of the biggest hockey moments in their nations’ histories will have to do.

“It’s the best team I’ve been a part of,” Keller said. “It’s been an honor to represent this country with the group of girls that we have....Every single player is, to me, top tier, best in the world. And so to get the chance to play with them has been really special. And not only that, I think off of the ice, the bond that we’ve created as a group, we’re really a family and I think that showed tonight. So makes it all the more special to go into this battle and come out Olympic champions with them.”