US rallies to 4-3 shootout win over Canada in outdoor game

By JOHN WAWROW
Associated Press

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Out of the way, Canada. Brady Tkachuk and the Americans are just fine when it comes to handling snow and ice.

Tkachuk and Kieffer Bellows found plenty enough traction on a snow-covered rink to score shootout goals and cap the United States’ 4-3 victory over Canada on Friday in international hockey’s first outdoor game.

Much like they did the similar two times against Canada at the world junior hockey championship, the defending gold-medal-winning Americans overcame a two-goal deficit by scoring twice in a span of 34 seconds in the third period.

“It just made it better with the snow coming down and the fans’ excitement. You could definitely feel it,” Tkachuk said of a game played with snow persistently falling from the opening faceoff. “We knew we were taking it to them in the second and third period and Coach was saying, if one goes in, two go in.”

A snowball effect, perhaps. And it happened in front of a world junior tournament record crowd of 44,592 — some going shirtless in celebrating the bitter elements — at the NFL Buffalo Bills’ home, New Era Field.

The Americans (1-1-1) showed resolve in not only beating their cross-border rivals, but overcoming the disappointment of a 3-2 loss to Slovakia on Thursday.

“That talks a lot about our group and the locker room and how close we are as a family,” Bellows said. “There was never a doubt in the whole entire locker room or on the bench at any point.”

Tkachuk and Ron Perunovich scored in the third period, while Casey Mittlestadt had three assists to take over the tournament lead with six points (two goals, four assists). Bellows scored his tournament leading fourth goal, and goalie Jake Oettinger stopped 19 shots through overtime and all four he faced in the shootout.

Boris Katchouk, Cale Makar and Dillon Dube scored for Canada (2-0-1), which has lost four straight meeting to the Americans. It was a familiar and disappointing result for goalie Carter Hart, who was also lost the championship game to the U.S. in January.

“Last year doesn’t matter at all,” said Hart, who stopped 32 shots through overtime Friday. “Tomorrow, we get the chance to finish in first place, so that’s what on our mind’s now.”

By earning a point for the shootout loss, Canada still has the edge in the Group A standings in being two points ahead of the Americans. The Canadians can clinch top spot with a win in their preliminary round finale against Denmark (0-3) on Saturday.

In the only other tournament game, St. Louis Blues draft pick Klim Kostin scored twice in leading Russia (2-1) to a 5-2 win over Belarus (0-3). Russia clinched a Group B berth in the quarterfinal round Tuesday. Belarus closes the preliminary round against the Czech Republic on Saturday and is in jeopardy of finishing last in five-team Group B standings.

Bellows scored on the Americans’ first shootout chance by snapping a shot through Hart’s legs. Then Tkachuk scored by firing a shot in the top right corner.

Down 3-1, Perunovich cut the lead to 3-2 from the slot by capping a give-and-go passing play with Mittelstadt with 13:51 left. Mittlestadt, the Buffalo Sabres’ first-round pick, then set up Tkachuk in front for the tying goal by gathering a loose puck behind the net after Canadian defenseman Kale Clague lost his stick.

The Americans drew upon last year’s win over Canada, in which they trailed 4-2.

“Just believing you’re never out of the game. We had a lot of hockey left to be played,” U.S. defenseman Adam Fox said. “Last year, it was a very similar thing. Some guys who are returning had that experience to tell guys this year that, ‘You know, we’re not down and out.’”

It was a familiar feeling of disappointment for Canada.

“Yeah, it’s a tough pill to swallow once again losing to the Americans in the shootout,” forward Michael McLeod said. “The only good thing is that this is round robin.”

The crowd on Friday appeared evenly split with American and Canadian fans, many of whom spent much of the game standing. As night fell, a red glow emanated from the middle section of the stadium, where rows of heaters hang above the seats.

Flurries began falling during the pre-game national anthems, and the snow fell harder as the game progressed. It began falling so heavily that the surface had to be shoveled at each commercial break starting late in the second period. Work crews filled several wheelbarrows full of snow, which were dumped onto a pile that grew to about seven feet behind the east end of the rink.

Oettinger had an opportunity to take time to enjoy the atmosphere.

“Yeah, I did see the shirtless guy on the Jumbotron. Yeah, I took a look a couple of times,” Oettinger said with a smile. “A really fun win, but now we’ve got to put it behind us.”

Final 2018 U.S. National Junior Team Roster Announced

BUFFALO, N.Y. — USA Hockey today announced the final 23-player roster for the 2018 U.S. National Junior Team that will compete in the 2018 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship in Buffalo, New York, from Dec. 26, 2017 - Jan. 5, 2018.

The final player roster is below:

FORWARDS

Joey Anderson
Kieffer Bellowa
Logan Brown
Trenr Frederic
Patrick Harper
Max Jones
Will Lockwood
Casey Mittelstadt
Josh Norris
Ryab Poehling
Brady Tkachuk
Riley Tufte
Kailer Yamamoto

DEFENSEMEN

Mikey Anderson
Adam Fox
Quinn Hughes
Ryab Lindgren
Andrew Peeke
Scott Perunovich
Dylan Samberg

GOALTENDERS

Jame Oettinger
Jeremy Swayman
Joseph Woll

"We're excited about these 23 players that will represent the United States on home ice in Buffalo," said Jim Johannson, general manager of the 2018 U.S. National Junior Team and also the assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey. "With depth at every position, the decisions we made today were very difficult and that is a credit to development of talent throughout the country. Our players and staff are excited to be in Buffalo and for the tournament to get underway."

The final roster features three goaltenders, seven defensemen and 13 forwards. Of the 23 players named to the roster, 16 have previously represented the United States in IIHF tournament play, including seven who skated for the gold medal-winning 2017 U.S. National Junior Team last year. Additionally, five players helped the U.S. earn a gold medal as a member of the 2017 U.S. Under-18 Men's National Team while 11 players skated for the 2016 U.S. Under-18 Men's National Team that earned a bronze medal last year.

In addition, forward Kieffer Bellows (Edina, Minn./Portland Winterhawks) and defensemen Adam Fox (Jericho, N.Y./Harvard University) and Ryan Lindgren (Minneapolis, Minn./University of Minnesota) have been tabbed alternate captains of the squad. Forward Joey Anderson (Roseville, Minn./University of Minnesota Duluth) was named captain of the 2018 U.S. National Junior Team on Dec. 18.

"We're excited about our veteran leadership group here in Buffalo," said Bob Motzko, head coach of the 2018 U.S. National Junior Team. "Joey, Kieffer, Ryan and Adam have the respect of everybody in the room and we have complete confidence that they can lead this group of players to a gold medal here on home ice."

Bellows, Fox and Lindgren were all members of last year's U.S. National Junior Team that captured the gold medal at the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship in Montreal and Toronto, Canada. Additionally, Lindgren was captain for the bronze medal-winning 2016 U.S. Under-18 Men's National Team that competed in the IIHF Under-18 Men's World Championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota while Bellows and Fox will be serving as alternate captains on a U.S. team for the first time.

Team USA will begin play in the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship next Tuesday, Dec. 26, against Denmark. Puck drop is set for 8:00 p.m. ET and can be seen live on NHL Network.

NOTES: The U.S. National Junior Team released defenseman Phil Kemp (Greenwich, Conn./Yale University) and forwards Jack Badini (Old Greenwich, Conn./Harvard University) and Hugh McGing (Chicago, Ill./Western Michigan University) ... The final 23-player roster consists of eight states, including Minnesota (10), Missouri (4), Michigan (3), Florida (2), Alaska (1), Connecticut (1), New York (1) and Washington (1) ... The U.S. will play in the first ever outdoor game in tournament history when it takes on Canada at New Era Field on Dec. 29, 2017. Tickets for that game, as well as all other tournament games, are available here ... Jim Johannson (Colorado Springs, Colo.) is serving as the general manager of Team USA for the ninth consecutive year ... Bob Motzko (St. Cloud, Minn.) is serving as head coach for the 2018 U.S. National Junior Team and joined behind the bench by assistant coaches Greg Brown (Scituate, Mass.), Grant Potulny (Grand Forks, N.D.), Kris Mayotte (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Steve Miller (Littleton, Colo.) ... USA Hockey’s international council, chaired by Gavin Regan (Potsdam, N.Y.), vice president of USA Hockey, has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. national teams ... All U.S. games will be broadcast live on NHL Network.

GAMEDAY: U.S. vs. Russia at Deutschland Cup

The U.S. Men’s National Select Team faces Russia tonight in the second of its three games at the 2017 Deutschland Cup. Opening faceoff is set for 7:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. ET) at Curt Frenzel Stadium.

The four-team round-robin tournament, which also includes host Germany and Slovakia, is part of the U.S. player evaluation process in selecting the 2018 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team.

Brandon Maxwell (Winter Park, Fla.) will start in goal. He did not dress yesterday. Maxwell has played in 14 games for BK Mlada Boleslav in the Czech Republic and owns a 9-5-0 record with a 2.12 goals against average and .928 save percentage.

Team USA’s roster for the Deutschland Cup includes 28 players, with 22 having the chance to play in each game. The six players who will not dress tonight, include defensemen Matt Gilroyand Jonathon Blum; forwards Ryan Malone,Brian Gionta, and Andy Miele; and goaltenderRyan Zapolski.

The U.S. is looking to rebound from a 2-1 loss to Slovakia yesterday afternoon in the opening contest of the Deutschland Cup, a game in which it had a 36-16 shots-on-goal edge. Russia is coming off an 8-2 win over host Germany in the night game yesterday.

NOTES: Team USA will face Germany in its closing game of the Deutschland Cup tomorrow (Nov. 12) at 4:45 p.m. (10:45 a.m. ET) … Players and staff arrived Tuesday (Nov. 7) and Wednesday morning (Nov. 8) in advance of Team USA’s opening 90-minute practice here on Wednesday afternoon. The group also had a 90-minute skate on Thursday morning … The U.S. Olympic coaching staff, led by Tony Granato, is also guiding the 2017 U.S. Men’s National Select Team at the Deutschland Cup. Granato served as assistant coach for the U.S. team that played in the 2004 Deutschland Cup. Chris Chelios, Scott Young, Keith Allain and Ron Rolston are serving as assistant coaches … The U.S. has won the Deutschland Cup on three occasions (2003, 2004, 2013), finished second four times (2002, 2007, 2009, 2015) and fourth once (2005, 2011).

Olympics could be next stop on Bobby Sanguinetti’s journey

By STEPHEN WHYNO
Associated Press

Bobby Sanguinetti had long given up on this dream.

It began during 90-minute car rides to hockey practice as a 10-year-old, and it was very much alive when the New York Rangers drafted him 21st overall in 2006. But when the highly touted defenseman’s career stalled in the minors and he left for Europe, the Lumberton, New Jersey, native figured his Olympic hopes were dashed.

“I never even considered it,” Sanguinetti said.

Then a funny thing happened: The NHL decided it wouldn’t send players to South Korea in 2018, ending a run of five consecutive Olympics featuring the league’s players. Now, Sanguinetti and others who left the NHL behind could get the chance of a lifetime in February on the biggest international stage.

“That’s the positives of the Olympics not using NHL players,” said Stan Butler, Sanguinetti’s coach in his final junior season. “Players like Bob Sanguinetti are going to get that opportunity to play maybe in the Olympics.”

The Olympics will be full of familiar, if not memorable, names. There’s Canadian Gilbert Brule, who was the sixth overall pick in 2005; Finn Mika Pyorala, who was once considered the best hockey player outside the NHL, and Russian Sergei Plotnikov, who played for three teams during his one season in North America.

Yet few Olympic hopefuls have journeys as turbulent as Sanguinetti. He has gone from first-round pick to NHL bust to now a stable, well-rounded defenseman playing in Switzerland, where he lives with his wife and newborn son.

“No one’s seen more different sides of the game,” said Danny O’Brien, Sanguinetti’s youth coach and mentor. “Here’s a first-rounder who struggled to make it all the way. He brings an awful lot of experience, and it’s not all high-end experience, either. He’s seen his share of downs.”

The downs include zero points in his only five games with the Rangers, hip surgery that cost him a large portion of one season and the realization that maybe he wasn’t going to make it in the NHL. After the highs of putting up 212 points in 265 junior games in the Ontario Hockey League and being an American Hockey League All-Star, Sanguinetti had just two goals and four assists in 45 NHL games.

“As a first-round pick, you obviously want to prove to people that you’re an NHL player,” Sanguinetti said. “More than anything, with the experience, you kind of realize it’s not as easy as everybody thinks. Just because you’re a first-round pick doesn’t mean you’re going to be given every opportunity.”

It looked easy for Sanguinetti growing up playing for O’Brien’s New Jersey Rockets and then in the OHL. As Butler put it, the 6-foot-1, 182-pound Sanguinetti “checked off all the boxes” as a dominant offensive defenseman who could quarterback the power play and fill the role of the modern-day puck-mover.

“That puck-moving, the skating game, the power-play mind that he had was what we liked about him,” Rangers director of player personnel Gordie Clark said. “He was getting stronger, bigger — the things we look for.”

Even in the AHL, Sanguinetti showed off his offensive prowess. Hartford assistant and former NHL defenseman J.J. Daigneault raved about Sanguinetti’s skating, hands, wrist shot and hockey IQ but said, “Maybe sometimes I think he was thinking offense too much.”

Sanguinetti played only five games for the Rangers in 2009 and had zero points in 57:40 of ice time.

“It just shows you how tough it is to play in the National Hockey League,” Clark said.

After being traded to the Carolina Hurricanes and missing most of the next season following hip surgery, Sanguinetti appeared in three games for them in 2011-12 and stuck around for most of the lockout-shortened 2013 season. He just didn’t put up the stats he did at other levels.

“As a father, you’re always convinced he still could’ve played,” his dad, Bob Sanguinetti, said. “You got to be a little bit lucky, too.”

Sanguinetti and his now-wife, Sarah, moved to Russia in 2013 as he tried playing in the Kontinental Hockey League. That 15-game experiment with Atlant Mytishchi gave Sanguinetti confidence in his defensive game, but when he tried the NHL once more, he played two more AHL seasons and didn’t make it back.

“If you’re not overly big, you’ve got to be either super quick or fast and solid and strong,” said Mike Stothers, who coached Sanguinetti for three OHL seasons. “There’s a big difference at the NHL level.”

Perhaps Sanguinetti was undersized, but years of on-ice production and a positive attitude toward coaching and improving made it seem like he’d have a long NHL career.

“Quite frankly, I’m a little shocked that it never worked out,” Butler said. “Unfortunately, in this crazy game of hockey, sometimes it doesn’t work out the way people would hope.”

Moving back overseas, this time to Switzerland, proved an easier adjustment than he imagined. The smooth-skating Sanguinetti looked right at home on the wider, international-sized ice, piling up the points and earning a strong report from the Rangers’ European scout and praise from his new coach.

“He feels good about where he is all over the ice, at both ends of the rink and on both sides of the puck,” HC Lugano coach Greg Ireland said. “He’s got good stick-on-puck abilities, he uses his feet and his hockey sense to be in good position to defend well and I think he brings the puck up the ice extremely well.”

Sanguinetti’s play in Europe caught the attention of U.S. Olympic general manager Jim Johannson, and Sanguinetti will play for the U.S. at the Deutschland Cup Nov. 10-12 as an audition for Korea.

“He’s finding his way both as a player and in the style of hockey that it is: a little bit more time, a little bit more puck possession,” Johannson said. “That takes time for those guys to develop that as players, and I think he’s shown that consistency.”

Sanguinetti found consistency in life, too, as Sarah gave birth to the couple’s first son, Jackson, on Aug. 20. A lighter slate of games, practices and travel allows him to spend more time at home as he focuses on making a living for his family, and his father said he doesn’t know if he’s ever seen his son this relaxed.

“When you’re in the AHL, you’re kind of always geared up to get the call-up,” his dad said. “Over there, he knows what’s in front of him and is just kind of focused on getting the job done. They have adjusted very well over there in Switzerland. ... It maybe wasn’t the ultimate goal down the line, but I think he’s very content with it.”

Sanguinetti is at peace with his whirlwind, unconventional route. O’Brien, who Sanguinetti considers the biggest influence on his career, is proud of the appreciative man he has become and that he “never buried anybody” about things not going as planned.

But Sanguinetti’s career is far from over. While Sanguinetti turns 30 in February, O’Brien points out that playing fewer games in Europe makes him more like a 26-year-old, and several coaches and scouts figure he could get another chance in the NHL next season, especially if he plays well at the Olympics.

“With the way the NHL is going, they’re looking for those puck-moving defensemen joining the play type of players,” Stothers said. “He’s certainly not old. He’s basically just maturing into what could be a very steady and reliable defenseman.”

Terry scores shootout gold

Troy Terry has done it again. He was the only scorer of ten shootout shooters tonight, giving the USA the gold medal in an incredible 5-4 win over Canada.

Just 24 hours ago, he scored three goals in a shootout to defeat Russia and advance to today's championship game.

"Before the shootout, I was thinking about trying something different [than shooting between the legs]," Terry explained. "As I came down, I decided I just had to try to go five-hole."

“I think it’s a Troy effect,” teammate Jack Roslovic enthused. “No matter what, you can cover it all you want, you can sit in the butterfly, he’ll find the five-hole.”

U.S. goalie Tyler Parsons stopped all five Canadian shooters, none of which came particularly close to scoring.

Canadian counterpart Carter Hart stopped four shots, allowing only Terry's low shot between the pads.

For the Americans this marks their fourth U20 gold, following 2004, 2010, and 2013.

"It was a great atmosphere in the building," Parsons said. "It gave me chills. It's unbelievable to win this for your country."

“Unbelievable,” said Colin White. “There’s no feeling like it. We came together as a team. Four weeks now we’ve been together, and to win a gold medal together is just great. The calmness we’ve had all tournament was huge. We were down yesterday, down twice today by two goals. We stayed calm on the bench and fought back.We always knew we had each other’s backs all tournament, and we came together so well as a team.”

Canada had an early lead of 2-0--and let it slip away--as well as a more critical 4-2 lead early in the third, but the Americans simply refused to give up or be intimidated by the pro-Canadian crowd.

There were countless scoring chances and giveaways forced by puck pressure, end-to-end action, and blinding speed. Canada outshot the U.S., 50-36, but in the end it was another nifty move by Terry that proved the difference.

"It was such an up-and-down game," Terry said. "We were down two goals twice. I think when we were down 2-0 and came back to tie it we got some confidence because it sucked to go down two goals right away. But, we knew as a team that no matter how we played, we had the confidence to get back into the game."

Kieffer Bellows, with his second of the game, and Colin White tied the game midway through the third, and despite incredible opportunities to score, the game went into a fourth and final period.

"The 23 of us, all the way from summer camp to Buffalo camp, we knew we had to come up huge," said Bellows, the American-born son of longtime Canadian NHLer, Brian. "Our country needed us at this point with the hockey. Kids looking up to us, teenagers, older adults that love hockey so much were looking up to us. We came out on top, and hopefully the country’s proud of us."

The 20-minute, five-on-five overtime was breath-taking and heart-stopping, Canada dominating but both teams having several glorious chances to win. Indeed, the Canadians had the only power play, called because of a too-many-men penalty to the U.S., but it couldn't put the puck in.

The Fates seemed to will the puck out of the net, believing a shootout was needed to decide this incredible contest of speed, skill, strength, and determination.

Canada's defenceman Thomas Chabot, named tournament MVP, played a staggering 43:53 in defeat.

"I'm proud of what I've done in this tournament," he explained, "but it's so hard to lose this game. I put everything I could into representing my country as well as I could and help the team win. I may have got the MVP, but I'm heartbroken. It's very difficult right now."

The game was played before a crowd of 20,173, just shy of the single-game mark set in Ottawa in 2009 between Canada and Sweden (20,380).

Emotions were high and the tension thick as the final game of the 2017 World Junior Championship started. The Americans had defeated Canada soundly, 3-1, just six days earlier, but now the gold medal was on the line.

Both teams had developed and matured over the last two weeks, and with everything on the line players gave it their all, and more.

The game started at a feverish pitch, and the raucous Bell Centre crowd was as loud as it’s been this year for the juniors. But just as the Canadians seemed nervous and tentative on New Year’s Eve, tonight it was the Americans who seemed rattled by circumstance, the intensity, and the relentless puck pressure from Canada.

Canada took control early and maintained high energy throughout the period, getting the puck deep and forcing the U.S. defencemen to turn and skate back to make a play.

The opening goal came at 4:38 off the rush. Matt Barzal made a nice pass to Mathieu Joseph, going to the net. Joseph couldn’t handle the puck but it came to defenceman Chabot who buried the puck as Parsons was playing Joseph to shoot.

Canada made it 2-0 at 9:02 thanks to a scramble in the U.S. slot. Adam Fox made an ill-advised swat at the puck with his glove, and it came right to Jeremy Lauzon who waited patiently before ripping a shot to the stick side of a screened Parsons.

Two goals, two defencemen, two French-Canadians. 2-0.

The Americans had a chance to get back into it with a power play, but they would up incurring a minor of their own halfway through to nullify the chance.

To start the second, though, the U.S. came out with purpose and turned the tables on Canada, getting the puck deep, forechecking effectively, and putting Canada on its heels.

The reward came just 3:04 into the period when Jordan Greenway made a nice pass from the left-wing boards to defenceman Charlie McAvoy, the trailer on the play. He had plenty of time to take aim and drill a shot over Hart’s glove to cut the lead in half.

The crowd responded with tremendous support, and the Canadian players got their legs going, coming right back at their opponents. This wave was scuttled by a too-many-men penalty, though, and that cost Canada dearly.

A point shot from Fox drifted to the goal and hit Bellows on the way in at 9:30. Tie game.

The Canadians continued to skate and drew two late power plays, but some over-passing on their part and good defence by the Americans kept it a 2-2 game.

A third power play early in the third gave Canada a chance it didn't pass up. Nicolas Roy ripped a shot over Parsons' shoulder at 1:52, and at 4:05 they made it 4-2 when Mathieu Joseph raced past Casey Fitzgerald at the U.S. blue line and made a great deke on Parsons.

But the resilient Americans did not go queitly to defeat. Just 38 seconds later McAvoy fed Bellows in the slot, and his quick shot fooled Hart to make it 4-3.

They weren't done yet.

Fox made a sensational pass to Colin White to the side of Hart, and White's perfect deflection at 7:07 found the back of the net. Four goals in just over five minutes and the game was tied again, much to the shock of the Bell Centre fans.

“I saw [Fox] get the puck up there,” White described. “I was behind the net, and I knew if I stayed on that low post he’d get it to me. It was a great play by him, and I was lucky enough to tip that in.”

That set the stage for a wild finish that will go down in history as one of the greatest junior games ever played.

via World Juniors.

United States advances to WJC final

MONTREAL -- Troy Terry scored three goals in the shootout and the United States advanced to the final of the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship with a 4-3 win against Russia at Bell Centre on Wednesday.

The United States will play in the final for the first time since 2013 after Tyler Parsons (Calgary Flames) got his glove on Alexander Polunin's (2017 draft eligible) attempt, which then bounced off the crossbar.

U.S. forward Joey Anderson (New Jersey Devils) hit the crossbar in overtime, and Russia goalie Ilya Samsonov (Washington Capitals) followed that immediately with successive saves on shots by defenseman Caleb Jones (Edmonton Oilers) and Anderson.

Russia forward Denis Gurianov (Dallas Stars) tied it 3-3 with his second goal of the game at 6:04 of the third period, 50 seconds after Samsonov made a glove save on a penalty shot by Clayton Keller (Arizona Coyotes) at 5:14.

Colin White (Ottawa Senators) scored two goals for the United States, which fell behind 1-0 and 2-1 after never trailing in its first five games of the tournament. Luke Kunin (Minnesota Wild) also scored a power-play goal.

The United States, who defeated Russia for the first time in eight playoff round games, trailed for the first time in the tournament after Kirill Kaprizov (Minnesota Wild) scored his tournament-leading eighth goal to put Russia ahead 1-0 at 11:54 of the first period.

Russia's first lead lasted 7:11 until Keller's shot from the right corner struck White on its way past Samsonov to tie it at 1-1 at 19:05.

That ended a 167:24 shutout streak for Samsonov, who shut out Slovakia and Denmark in his previous two starts.

Gurianov gave Russia its second one-goal lead at 2-1 with his first goal of the game at 1:17 of the second period.

Kunin's power-play goal at 10:23 of the second tied it 2-2. White gave the U.S. its first lead, 3-2 with a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle for his second of the game at 16:21.

USA ends NYE drought

The United States put on a shot- and pass-blocking clinic in defeating Canada, 3-1, this afternoon at the Air Canada Centre to claim first place in Group B.

The result marked the first New Year’s Eve victory for the U.S. over Canada in 18 years, a streak of seven games (six losses, one tie).

The U.S. was full measure for the win, playing with greater confidence and surety, capitalizing on early power plays, weathering the storm when Canada turned on the heat, and getting better goaltending at crucial moments from Joseph Woll than that provided Canada by Connor Ingram.

"The penalty killing was the story of the game for us," U.S. coach Bob Motzko said. "We weren't so good the last two games, and we made some changes, and tonight the killers were great."

In fact, Canada had nearly 12 minutes of power-play time in the game but managed only one goal and not many more scoring chances. The Americans scored on their first two man advantages.

"Obviously, it's great to win this game, but now we're focused on the quarter-finals," said Clayton Keller. "Our best hockey is yet to come. Beating Canada and Russia is huge, but the real hockey starts Monday."

"They're a great team," said Jordan Greenway, who had a goal and an assist in the first period, "but we kept our game simple and did what we had to do. "Our forwards, our defencemen, everyone was blocking shots when they had to. We have great chemistry playing defence as a team."

The Americans silenced the crowd early with two quick power-play goals. The first came at 4:31 on a play around the goal. Greenway feathered a nice pass from the corner to Colin White, and his quick shot beat Ingram to the far side.

Just a minute and a half later, after a lazy kneeing penalty by Philippe Myers, Greenway walked out form the corner and tucked the puck between Ingram’s pads, a soft goal, to be sure, but a great burst of speed from the American forward.

Later in the period Canada had a great chance to get on the board thanks to a two-man advantage for 47 seconds, but it got nary a decent shot off during the power play.

Canada had another opportunity early in the second when U.S. captain Luke Kunin took a five-minute major (and game misconduct) for interference. The Canadian on the other end of the hard hit, Myers, left the game and didn't return. Coach Dominique Ducharme confirmed after that Myers has a concussion and might miss the rest of the tournament.

This was followed by another minor soon after, giving the home side a two-man advantage for 1:48. This time they connected. Thomas Chabot got a rebound to the back side of the net and drilled it in before Woll could get over.

This started several minutes of intense pressure, but Canada couldn’t get the equalizer and the visitors silenced the crowd with a goal off a juicy rebound from Ingram. This time it was Jeremy Bracco who found the back of the net to make it a 3-1 game.

Canada tried valiantly in the third but was stymied at every moment. "We wanted to keep them to the perimeter," Greenway added. "Nothing complex; just get it out."

And now, both teams head to the quarter-finals against teams to be determined later tonight. For the U.S., today's win was another building block towards a medal, and for Canada it was a lesson learned.

via World Juniors.

Americans look sharp in 5-2 win

Team USA built on its improved play as its first game progressed, and the players came to the rink ready for a full 60 minutes of skating tonight.

They worked effectively in all facets of the game, beating Slovakia 5-2 and improving to 2-0 in the tournament. There were five goal scorers, and 12 players recorded at least one point for the winners.

"We were focused and ready to play," said captain Luke Kunin. "We did what we needed to do to be successful. We needed to get a good start and get pucks to the net. Everyone on the team contributed."

The Slovaks were much improved over their one-sided loss to Canada last night but were still decidedly the second best team on the ACC ice tonight. They are now 0-2.

Moving the puck with confidence and using their speed, the Americans pressured their opponents all night long and generated countless good scoring chances. In all, shots were 50-20 for the U.S., and the Slovaks have now been outshot in two games by a cumulative total of 94-26.

Slovakia coach Ernest Bokros decided to rest goaltender Adam Huska in favour of Matej Tomek tonight, and Tomek was busy and mostly impressive.

At the other end, coach Bob Motzko did the same, playing Joseph Woll and resting Tyler Parsons.

"Coach Motzko always says you have to come to the rink ready to play every day," noted defenceman Jack Ahcan. "That's what we did today. It's about our heart and our effort."

The U.S. opened the scoring at 10:15 of the first despite a great save by the goalie off a point-blank shot by Tanner Laczynski, but Tomek couldn’t control the rebound and Laczynski knocked in the loose puck.

The Americans went up 2-0 near the end of the period off a gaffe by Andrej Hatala at the U.S. blue line. As he prepared to play the puck he lost his balance and fell awkwardly, allowing a two-on-one with Clayton Keller and Colin White.

Keller waited, fired a nice saucer pass to White at the blue ice, and White redirected the puck in for a 2-0 lead.

But Slovakia showed some life. Midway through the period it had a power play and almost scored, moving the puck well and creating several chances. The Slovaks had a second man advantage later in the period and built on the success of the first, scoring at 18:08 on a great back-door pass from Oliver Pataky to Martin Fehervary who didn’t miss the open net.

The U.S. went up 3-1 at 2:03 of the second on a delayed penalty. Jack Ahcan got the puck to Tage Thompson in the slot. The pass was behind Thompson, who spun and roofed a shot in one motion over an unsuspecting Tomek. The highlight-reel goal seemed to deflate the Slovaks.

Six minutes later, a Charlie McAvoy point shot beat Tomek cleanly, and soon after Troy Terry added a fifth goal. The U.S. had just the comfortable lead it deserved.

Michal Roman got the only goal of the third, with 36.5 seconds remaining, on a long point shot to make the score marginally closer.

via World Juniors.

Americans win opener

Two goals in the middle period broke a 1-1 tie to ensure the victory. Clayton Keller had two goals for the Americans, who limited Latvia to just 12 shots on goal.

"We take every game and team seriously," said assistant captain Colin White, who had a goal and an assist. "We had a few days off before this game, so it took us a bit of time to get our legs going. Overall, there were a lot of positives we can take for the next game."

This marked Latvia's first U20 game at the top level since 2013. It won Division I-A last year to earn the promotion and looked every bit the second-best team this afternoon. Nonetheless, it also showed pluck and determination against an American team that was much faster and more skilled with the puck. 

The U.S. showed plenty of skill but also took some uncharacteristic penalties and allowed some odd-man rushes that might have been more costly against a top-six nation. Still, as the game went on, it played better and better.

"We don't want to take so many penalties, of course," White added, "but at the same time, we have a great penalty kill, so we're confident."

The Americans opened the scoring at 6:27 of the first on a routine shot by Patrick Harper from the slot. His shot fooled Mareks Mitens in the Latvian goal and staked the U.S. to an early lead. 

Latvia was outclassed the first half of the period and didn’t get its first shot until near the ten-minute mark. It wasn’t until four minutes later it got another shot, but that one counted. 

A loose puck squirted up the middle of the ice where Renars Krastenbergs, celebrating his 18th birthday, chased it down. He went in alone on Tyler Parsons and made a nice deke at 15:22 to tie the score and bring most of the crowd to its feet.

"Those cheers helped us a lot," said Mitens. "It was such an amazing feeling when everyone got behind us."

"I looked behind me to see how much time I had, and I saw the goalie back up a bit, so I made a move and it worked," Krastenbergs said.

Interestingly, whereas the Latvians took the first half of the period to register a shot, the Americans were without one for all of the second half of the opening 20.

The U.S. took a 2-1 lead at 6:29 of the middle period. After allowing several odd-man rushes to their opponents, they went ahead on a nice pass by Tage Thompson to Colin White on a two-on-two rush. White finished the play by roofing a shot over Mitens’s glove from in close.

The Latvians had a great chance to tie the score with a two-man advantage for 1:24, but the U.S. penalty kill didn't even allow so much as a shot on goal.

"Whenever you have something good like that happen, you get a lot of momentum," White suggested. "That kill really got us going."

Indeed, after a lengthy period of sustained pressure, Clayton Keller made it 3-1 with only 1:15 remaining in the middle period, putting the game out of reach.

Keller added his second at 12:19 of the third on a screen shot from the slot, and Jeremy Bracco found a hole between the pads of Mitens late in the game to make it 5-1. Jordan Greenaway closed out the scoring with 39.9 seconds remaining.

The U.S. has tomorrow off while the Latvians play Russia in the afternoon.

via World Juniors.

Team USA loses finale to Team Czech Republic

TORONTO -- Team USA is leaving the World Cup of Hockey 2016 without a victory after losing to Team Czech Republic 4-3 in the final preliminary-round game at Air Canada Centre on Thursday.

"None of us with the U.S. team here from head to toe is happy with what's happened here," Team USA coach John Tortorella said. "But I thought our guys rallied together here a little bit, and that's what we talked about, as far as all the things going around the team and the organization of USA Hockey, let's just try to play a game for ourselves.

"We come up short, but I think some guys gave some really true efforts. We just didn't find a way to win the hockey game."

Joe Pavelski, Justin Abdelkader and Ryan McDonagh scored, and Ben Bishop made 16 saves on 20 shots for Team USA before being replaced to start the third period by Cory Schneider, who made seven saves.

"It's important any time you wear your jersey," Abdelkader said. "Putting on the USA sweater, there's a lot of pride in it. I think this [loss] kind of exemplified the way we played the tournament. We just had too many mistakes and they were magnified, teams took advantage of them. There are good players in this tournament, it's best on best, so they're going to make you pay."

'Milan Michalek scored twice and his brother Zbynek Michalek scored for Team Czech Republic. Andrej Sustr scored, and Petr Mrazek made 36 saves.

PLAYER & PUCK TRACKING INSIGHTS from SAP
The puck spent 46% in Team USA's offensive zone at even strength (5-on-5). The puck spent 36% in Team Czech Republic's offensive zone at even strength (5-on-5).

Milan Michalek said he believed it was the first time he and his brother scored in the same game for the same team.

"It's special to do it in the World Cup and with our parents here, it's nice," he said. "It's always special to play for the national team when we're playing together."

Team Czech Republic (1-2-0) and Team USA (0-3-0) finished third and fourth in Group A behind Team Canada (3-0-0) and Team Europe (2-1-0).

With the game tied 2-2 late in the second period, Team Czech Republic scored two goals in 39 seconds.

Sustr scored at 16:50 when his shot from the side found a hole between Bishop and the post. Michalek scored his second goal at 17:29 when Ales Hemsky set him up for a one-timer in the slot.

Team USA pulled within 4-3 at 2:22 of the third period on McDonagh's second goal of the tournament, fighting off Jakub Voracek to convert a feed from Blake Wheeler while shorthanded.

Team USA buzzed the Team Czech Republic zone for most of the remainder of the third period, including a power play with 2:11 to play, but could not tie the game.

Zbynek Michalek made it 1-0 at 12:44 of the first period on a point shot. Pavelski tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal at 14:28 off a setup from Zach Parise and Patrick Kane.

Milan Michalek got credit for Team Czech Republic's second goal when Team USA defenseman Ryan Suter swept a loose puck in the crease into his net at 6:03 of the second period. Abdelkader tied the game 2-2 at 14:13 of the second, one-timing a Dustin Byfuglien pass past Mrazek.

Goal of the game: 

Hemsky skated down the right wing and found Milan Michalek skating into the high slot with a perfect pass. Michalek put his shot in the top corner past Bishop's extended glove to score what turned out to be the game-winning goal.

Save of the game: 

At 5:06 of the third period, Kane corralled a puck off the end boards, spun on a Team Czech Republic defender, and shot toward an empty net. Mrazek got across from the other side of the crease and met the puck near the goal line with his pad, maintaining the 4-3 lead.

Unsung moment of the game: 

Team Czech Republic's penalty killers allowed two shots on Mrazek during a power play that began with 2:11 to go in the third period. Team USA pulled goaltender Cory Schneider for an extra attacker halfway through the power play, but Team Czech Republic did not allow it to score the tying goal.

Highlight of the game: 

Byfuglien skated down the left wing before stopping suddenly to shake a defender and create a passing lane. He immediately saw Abdelkader alone on the far side of the net and set him up for a one-timer that beat Mrazek and tied the game.

"It was a great pass," Abdelkader said. "[Byfuglien's] got great vision, he's played forward in [the NHL] a little bit, and you can see why, because when he gets in the rush he can make plays."

They said it

"If you look at [this win] from a hockey perspective in the Czech Republic, it has a huge meaning because you go out and prove to people there that you can play. Even though the talent on the team or the talent that we have in the NHL or all over the world in the leagues is not as deep as we used to have, you still can come out with a great effort. I think the biggest thing we can take out of this is how much passion and … heart that we put out tonight." -- Team Czech Republic assistant coach Vinny Prospal

Need to know

Each team scored more goals in this game than it did in its previous two games combined. Team USA and Team Czech Republic each scored two goals in its first two games. … Kane played 23:15, second only to defenseman John Carlson, and had a game-high seven shots on goal. Tortorella said he though Kane and Derek Stepan were Team USA's best players.

via WCH2016.com.

Team Canada defeats Team USA, secures semifinal berth

TORONTO -- Two games into the World Cup of Hockey 2016, Team Canada has clinched a spot in the semifinals and the competitive portion of Team USA's tournament is over.

Team Canada advanced to the final four by scoring four consecutive goals in a 4-2 win against Team USA at Air Canada Centre on Tuesday.

Matt Duchene scored twice, and Carey Price made 32 saves for Team Canada, which is 2-0-0 in Group A and can clinch first place with a win against Team Europe on Wednesday. Team Europe also is 2-0-0 and has clinched a semifinal berth.

"Our objective was to win [Tuesday]," Team Canada defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic said. "Now we're looking to [Wednesday]. We wanted to get in the semifinals. We did it. Now we want to finish first in our [group]."

- - -

PLAYER & PUCK TRACKING INSIGHTS from SAP
During Team Canada's power plays, the puck was in their offensive zone 63% of the time; during Team USA's power plays, the puck was in their offensive zone 43% of the time

- - -

Team USA is 0-2-0 and was eliminated from contention for the semifinals along with Team Czech Republic, which is 0-1-1. They close their World Cup against each other Thursday.

"It's disappointing, frustrating, all different types of emotions," Team USA coach John Tortorella said. "I think we let some people down. It's on my watch. I certainly feel responsible for that. It's really disappointing."

After Team USA defenseman Ryan McDonagh scored 4:22 into the first period for a 1-0 lead, Duchene scored 1:29 later to tie it 1-1. Corey Perry gave Team Canada a 2-1 lead 14 seconds after that when the rebound of Logan Couture's right-circle shot went into the net off Perry's pants.

Duchene then converted on a defensive-zone turnover by Team USA and beat Jonathan Quick between the pads to make it 3-1 at 12:07.

"The first couple of minutes we were tentative, we weren't playing the Canadian way and moving the puck," Perry said. "They capitalized and they got a goal and I think that kind of got us into the game and got us going."

Patrice Bergeron was credited with the goal that extended Team Canada's lead to 4-1 at 8:50 of the second period when John Tavares' centering feed hit his skate before it deflected into the net off McDonagh's right skate.

T.J. Oshie scored for Team USA with 2:32 remaining in the third period.

Goal of the Game:

After Duchene tied the game at 1-1 at 5:51 of the first period, Perry scored 14 seconds later to put Team Canada ahead. Quick made a blocker save on Couture's shot from the right circle but left a rebound in front that carried into the net off Perry's pants. Team USA challenged for goaltender interference, but video review confirmed it was a good goal.

"I thought it was a good goal all the way from the start," Perry said. "I'll take it going to the net."

Save of the Game:

With Team Canada leading 3-1 and 6:13 remaining in the first period, Team USA forward Joe Pavelski swatted at a bouncing puck in the slot and Price moved to his right to get a piece of it with his right shoulder.

Unsung Moment of the Game:

Vlasic intentionally shot wide left from the left point and the carom off the end boards led to Duchene's first goal. The puck bounced to Duchene at the right side of the net and he knocked it in from there to tie the game 1-1.

"I'm a good pool player, so maybe that helped," Vlasic said. "I saw Joe [Thornton] on one side of the net and saw Duchene on the other side, so I just had to send it behind the net and it worked out."

Highlight of the Game:

Tavares turned around Team USA defenseman Matt Niskanen to set up Bergeron's goal. Tavares faked to the outside before cutting inside Niskanen in the left circle and throwing the puck in front to Bergeron. "It was a great job by [Bergeron] going to the net," Tavares said. "I'm glad he went there because if he didn't it wouldn't have gone in."

They Said It:

"It means a lot. We had a chance to knock them out of the tourney [Tuesday] and they were obviously one of the favorites coming in. We had an opportunity, we took it, and we needed to." -- Team Canada forward Matt Duchene

"It's very disappointing. Definitely not the way we envisioned it. It happens so quick in this tournament. We found ourselves chasing right away with [a 3-0 loss to Team Europe on Saturday] and put ourselves in a tough spot here against this team." -- Team USA defenseman Ryan McDonagh

Need to Know:

McDonagh's goal ended Price's shutout streak in international play at 228:41. That dated to Canada's quarterfinal against Latvia at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. … Team USA made two lineup changes, inserting defenseman Dustin Byfuglien for Jack Johnson and forward Kyle Palmieri for Brandon Dubinsky. … Team Canada coach Mike Babcock said goalie Corey Crawford will start against Team Europe. … The winner of the game between Team Canada and Team Europe will play the second-place team from Group B in the semifinals. The loser will play the team that wins Group B.

What's Next:

Team USA: Plays its final game of the World Cup against Team Czech Republic on Thursday (8 p.m. ET; ESPN2, SN, TVA Sports).

Team Canada: A game against Team Europe to decide first place in Group A on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; ESPN2, SN, TVA Sports).

via wch2016.com.

Team USA shut out by Team Europe in opener

TORONTO -- The World Cup of Hockey 2016 opened with a shocker when Team Europe upset Team USA 3-0 at Air Canada Centre on Saturday.

Marian Gaborik, Leon Draisaitl and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare scored, and Jaroslav Halak made 35 saves for Team Europe.

Jonathan Quick made 14 saves for Team USA, which has two days off before playing Team Canada on Tuesday.

"We know we've got to learn from that one and get ready for the next one because it's not going to get any easier for us," Team USA left wing Zach Parise said. "We've got to rebound."

Not much was expected from Team Europe after it lost its first two pretournament games to Team North America. But it has opened eyes by defeating Team Sweden 6-2 in its final pretournament game and shutting out Team USA.

"Within the room, we know what we're capable of," Draisaitl said. "From the outside, we got kind of stamped as the underdog here and I think we all understand that, but, at the same time, we have some really, really good players on our team as well, a lot of experience."

Team Europe scored 4:19 into the first period when Gaborik finished a 2-on-1 with Frans Nielsen. Draisaitl made it 2-0 by finishing a 2-on-0 with Nino Niederreiter 4:02 into the second period. That came off a turnover by Team USA right wing Patrick Kane inside the Team Europe blue line.

Bellemare made it 3-0 by deflecting Jannik Hansen's left-point shot past Quick with 1:28 remaining in the second period. Team USA picked up the pressure in the third period, outshooting Team Europe 17-7, but could not break through against Halak.

"I think [the win] set us up for some fun now in the tournament and [we] just want to stay in the moment, keep the picture really small," Team Europe coach Ralph Krueger said. "We have a difficult challenge still ahead of us. We haven't accomplished anything yet."

Goal of the game: Kane's turnover proved costly when it led to Draisaitl's goal. Draisaitl pressured Kane into turning over the puck to Tobias Rieder, leading to the 2-on-0. With Team USA defensemen John Carlson and Ryan Suter caught deep, Draisaitl and Niederreiter had plenty of time to pass the puck back and forth before Draisaitl scored from the right side of the crease.

Save of the game: With Team Europe leading 2-0 and 10:46 remaining in the second period, Halak slid to his left to break up a 2-on-1 pass from Kane intended for Ryan Kesler, who was driving to the right post.

Unsung moment of the game: Team Europe killed off Christian Ehrhoff's tripping penalty with 3:41 remaining in the second period by blocking three shots and having Halak stop Joe Pavelski's left-circle one-timer. Bellemare scored 13 seconds after Ehrhoff exited the penalty box.

Highlight of the game: An apparent power-play goal with 5:50 remaining in the second period that would have pulled Team USA within 2-1 was disallowed after video review. Officials in the NHL Situation Room ruled that James van Riemsdyk deliberately directed the rebound of Ryan Suter's left-point shot into the net with his body.

They said it

"We tried to stay together even through a little bit of adversity there. But we just couldn't create better scoring chances. I thought for really a good part of the game we had the puck quite a bit, but we just couldn't develop those good scoring chances." -- Team USA coach John Tortorella

"We probably wish we were playing [Sunday or Monday]. It'll be a long two days for us. I'm sure we'll go over some things on video, kind of learn from our mistakes, figure out the way we want to play and the way we want to do certain things better." -- Team USA right wing Patrick Kane

"I think our play with the puck was pretty good. We didn't do any unnecessary mistakes or give them a whole lot of freebies and make them come through us and try to do something special to get to our net." -- Team Europe captain Anze Kopitar

"I think the guys did a really good job in the first period. We didn't give them too much. If you look at the shot count in the first period, it was 6-5 for Team USA, so it kind of got me into the game, and as the game went on I was feeling more comfortable and the guys were making better plays." -- Team Europe goaltender Jaroslav Halak

Need to know

Each team was 0-for-4 on the power play. Team USA had 11 power-play shots on goal, including eight in the third period. … Team Europe blocked 18 shots. … Team USA outhit Team Europe 25-19. … Defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, right wing Kyle Palmieri and goaltender Cory Schneider were scratched for Team USA. Defenseman Luca Sbisa, left wing Mikkel Boedker and goaltender Philipp Grubauer were scratched for Team Europe.

What's next

Team USA: Two days off before playing Team Canada on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVA Sports).

Team Europe: A game against Team Czech Republic on Monday. (3 p.m. ET; ESPN2, SN, TVA Sports).

via WCH2016.com.

Team USA holds off Team Canada

COLUMBUS -- It felt more important than a pretournament game for the World Cup of Hockey 2016, but that's probably what should be expected when rivals meet.

In the end, after all the physical play, scrums and heavy checks were thrown, Team USA defeated Team Canada 4-2 at Nationwide Arena on Friday.

Joe Pavelski and Patrick Kane each scored and had an assist, and Jonathan Quickmade 32 saves in two periods for Team USA.

"When the U.S. plays Canada, you're going to get that type of game whether it's an exhibition, preliminary game, semifinal or final; you're going to find yourself in that situation in this rivalry," Kane said.

The teams play again Saturday at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa in another pretournament game. The World Cup starts Sept. 17 in Toronto.

Team Canada goalie Carey Price, playing for the first time since a season-ending right-knee injury sustained Nov. 25 while playing for the Montreal Canadiens, made 21 saves.

Zach Parise scored the first goal for Team USA, and Derek Stepan scored into an empty net. Ben Bishop made nine saves in third period, allowing a goal to Drew Doughty at 5:21 that made it 3-2.

Patrice Bergeron also scored for Team Canada.

Price didn't have much work early; Team Canada had 12 of the first 13 shots through 12 minutes but could not score. The remainder of the period belonged to Team USA, which got a goal from Parise at 16:56 and one from Kane 65 seconds later to hold a 2-0 lead and an 18-15 edge in shots after the first.

"We give up a few chances right at the end of shifts, so we were trying to make some plays a little too pretty," Team Canada forward Jonathan Toews said.

Quick, a two-time Stanley Cup winner for the Los Angeles Kings, twice stopped Sidney Crosby early in the game, and less than a minute before Team USA scored the first goal he stopped Tyler Seguin in the slot.

"I was happy the way Jonathan played in that situation," Team USA coach John Tortorella said. "Then we found ourselves, then we dipped again."

Bergeron made it 2-1 at 13:24 of the second period on a rebound from the slot. Pavelski scored at 15:54 off transition for a 3-1 lead.

Goal of the game: Doughty showed why he is one of the best offensive defensemen when his shot from the right circle left goalie Bishop with no chance to stop it.

Save of the game: With Team USA holding a 3-2 lead in the third period, Bishop wandered toward the side wall and left the net open for Joe Thornton. But Team USA defenseman Ryan McDonagh went down and stopped the shot at the edge of the crease, and teammate Justin Abdelkadercleared Crosby from the rebound.

Unsung moment of the game: With 14:48 left in the second period, Team USA forwardRyan Kesler bailed out Quick to preserve a 2-0 lead. Quick made the initial save on Seguin, but the puck bounced to the right slot where John Tavares had Quick out of position. Kesler went to his knees at the goal line to block the shot. The momentum had shifted to Team Canada and a goal there might have been critical.

Highlight moment of the game: A simple redirect by Parise for a 1-0 lead. Subtle in nature, his ability to shirk the defense put him in position to get his stick on the long shot by Ryan Suter. Team Canada had dominated the game to that point, but the goal gave Team USA the lead.

Need to know

Kesler received a major for boarding and a game misconduct at 17:05 of the second period for a hit on Shea Weber. … Scratches for Team USA were goalie Cory Schneider, defenseman Erik Johnson and forwardJames van Riemsdyk. Tortorella said they will play Saturday. Team Canada scratches were goalie Corey Crawford, defensemanJay Bouwmeester and forward Corey Perry. Holtby and Crawford are expected to split time Saturday.

They said it

"There were lots of scrums tonight. They were generated by the players. The referees can clean that up in two seconds. All you've got to do is put people in the box. No more scrums." -- Team Canada coach Mike Babcock

"The atmosphere here was awesome. Columbus has been great for us this week. It's nice to hear the cannon a few times tonight." -- Team USA captain Joe Pavelski

"It was definitely chippy out there. I definitely thought there were a few things that crossed the line. I'm not going to mention them." -- Team Canada goalie Carey Price

"We were nervous." -- Team USA coach John Tortorella on the slow start

What's next

Team Canada: Will play Team USA at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN3, SN, TVA Sports) in another pretournament game.

Team USA: Will play Team Canada at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN3, SN, TVA Sports) in another pretournament game

USA beats Swede for 2016 WJC Bronze Medal

"The Neutral Zone" Game Report

USA 8, SWEDEN 3 (BRONZE MEDAL GAME)

Forwards Anders Bjork, Ryan Donato and Matthew Tkachuk each scored two goals to help lead the United States to an 8-3 victory against Sweden in the bronze-medal game of the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki, Finland, on Tuesday.

Bjork and Donato are selections of the Boston Bruins in the 2014 NHL Draft, and Tkachuk is an A-rated skater on NHL Central Scouting's November players to watch list for the 2016 draft.

USA won its ninth medal in the history of the tournament, and fifth bronze. The Americans also defeated Sweden 4-2 in 2011 and 2-1 in 2007 to win the bronze medal.

Recaps of today's World Junior Championship games

FINLAND 6, CANADA 5
Defending champion Canada lost to Finland 6-5 in the quarterfinals of the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki on Saturday.

Right wing Patrik Laine, a 2016 NHL Draft eligible prospect, scored twice for Finland, including the game-winner on the power play with 5:50 remaining.

Antti Kalapudas, Aleksi Saarela (New York Rangers), Julius Nattinen (Anaheim Ducks) and Sebastian Aho (Carolina Hurricanes) had goals for Finland, which plays Sweden in one semifinal on Monday.

Finland's Jesse Puljujarvi, also a top prospect for the 2016 draft, had three assists and leads the tournament with 15 points.

USA 7, CZECH REPUBLIC 0

Auston Matthews, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, had a hat trick to lead the United States into the semifinals against Russia on Monday.

Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina Hurricanes) made 28 saves to earn his first shutout of the tournament.

Matthews scored his first two goals 4:53 apart in the second period and completed his hat trick 24 seconds into the third period. He leads all scorers with seven goals.

Nick Schmaltz (Chicago Blackhawks), Christian Dvorak (Arizona Coyotes), Scott Eansor and Alex DeBrincat also scored for the United States, which has outscored its opponents 25-5 in winning four of its five games.

RUSSIA 4, DENMARK 3 (OT):

Vladislav Kamenev scored his second goal of the game at 5:00 of overtime to move unbeaten Russia into the semifinals.

Kamenev (Nashville Predators) had forced the overtime by scoring with 44 seconds remaining in the third period.

Yegor Korshkov and Artur Lauta each had a goal and an assist for Russia, which outshot Denmark 46-21.

Russia lost 5-4 to Canada in last year's final and is trying to win the gold medal for the first time since 2011.

SWEDEN 6, SLOVAKIA 0:

Linus Soderstrom (New York Islanders) made 17 saves for his second shutout of the tournament, moving unbeaten Sweden into the semifinals.

Adrian Kempe (Los Angeles Kings), Jens Looke (Coyotes), Axel Holmstrom (Detroit Red Wings), Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson (Boston Bruins), Alexander Nylander and Christoffer Ehn (Red Wings) scored for Sweden, which put the game away with three third-period goals.

"Feels good to be through to the semifinals," Holmstrom told the IIHF website. "I thought we played a really solid game."

Slovakia goalie Adam Huska stopped 49 shots.

SWITZERLAND 5, BELARUS 1:

Timo Meier (San Jose Sharks) and Denis Malgin (Florida Panthers) had a goal and two assists each for Switzerland in the first relegation-round game.

Noah Rod (Sharks), Damien Riat and Julien Privet also scored for Switzerland, which outshot Belarus 41-21.

Recaps of today's WJC games

United States 10, Switzerland 1: Auston Matthews, the likely top pick of the 2016 NHL Draft, had two goals and two assists to lead the United States to a 10-1 victory against Switzerland in a Group A preliminary-round game at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship in Helsinki Ice Hall in Helsinki, Finland.

Fellow top draft prospect Matthew Tkachuk and Christian Dvorak (Arizona Coyotes), Zachary Werenski (Columbus Blue Jackets) and Colin White (Ottawa Senators) had three-point games. The win moved the U.S. into second place in Group A with six points, three behind first-place Sweden.

Nick Schmaltz (Chicago Blackhawks), Ryan Donato (Boston Bruins) and Brandon Carlo (Boston Bruins) also scored for the U.S.

Timo Meier (San Jose Sharks) scored for Switzerland, which finished fifth in Group A with one point. Switzerland will play Belarus in the relegation round.
The U.S. finishes preliminary-round play Thursday against Denmark (9 a.m. ET; NHLN).

Finland 8, Slovakia 3: Tournament scoring leader Jesse Puljujarvi, an A-rated skater by NHL Central Scouting in its November players to watch list for the 2016 draft, had a four-point game to lead Finland in a Group B game at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki.

Puljujarvi, who has 10 points in three games, had one goal and three assists.

Finland took a 3-2 lead into the third period before breaking out with five goals to put the game away.

The host country is third in Group B with six points. Finland plays Czech Republic on Thursday to finish the preliminary round.

Sweden 5, Denmark 0: Oskar Lindblom (Philadelphia Flyers) had one goal and one assist and goaltender Felix Sandstrom (Philadelphia Flyers) made nine saves for the shutout for Sweden in a Group A game.

Sweden won its third straight game and clinched first place in Group A with nine points.

Adrian Kempe (Los Angeles Kings) opened the scoring 13 seconds into the game at Helsinki Ice Hall. Gustav Forsling (Chicago Blackhawks) gave Sweden a 2-0 lead with a power-play goal midway through the first period.

William Lagesson (Edmonton Oilers) and top 2016 NHL Draft prospect Alexander Nylander also scored for Sweden.

Sweden finishes preliminary-round play Thursday against Canada (3:30 p.m. ET; NHLN); Denmark finishes group play Thursday against the U.S. (9 a.m. ET; NHLN).

Czech Republic 5, Belarus 3: Simon Stransky, a top prospect for the 2016 draft, was one of five scorers in the victory for the Czech Republic in Group B play.

Vladislav Goncharov's power-play goal gave Belarus a 3-2 lead after two periods. But 2:06 into the third period Jiri Smejkal scored to tie the game, and 2:14 later a goal by Radek Vesely put the Czech Republic ahead for good. Defenseman Dominik Masin (Tampa Bay Lightning) closed the scoring with an empty-net goal in the final minute of the third.

Defenseman Stepan Falkovski, a C-rated player to watch for the 2016 draft, and Yegor Sharangovich also scored for Belarus.

The Czechs, with two wins and an overtime loss, are second in Group B with seven points. They play Finland to finish group play. Belarus will play Switzerland in the best-of-3 relegation round.

Recap of today's WJC games

SWEDEN 1, UNITED STATES 0

HELSINKI -- New York Islanders goaltending prospect Linus Soderstrom made 46 saves and Alexander Nylander scored as Sweden shut out the United States 1-0 on Monday in the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Nylander, a top prospect for the 2016 NHL Draft, scored on a second-period breakaway. He has one goal and four assists in the tournament to lead Sweden, which is 2-0 in Group A

The United States, which fell to 1-1 after beating Canada in its opener, couldn't score despite having eight power-play chances in the game. They had 20 power-play shots and 14:48 of total power-play time.

It was the first time the U.S. lost to Sweden in the WJC since 1996, ending a 12-game winning streak.

The U.S. will face Switzerland on Wednesday and Denmark on Thursday.

RUSSIA 6, FINLAND 4:

Kirill Kaprizov (Minnesota Wild) had a goal and an assist and Yegor Korshkov chipped in with three assists for Russia.

Sebastian Aho (Carolina Hurricanes) gave the host side the lead when he beat Russian goalie Alexander Georgiev early in the first period at Hartwall Arena. Kaprizov tied it on the power play but Patrik Laine restored Finland's one-goal cushion with 67 seconds left in the opening frame.

Aleksi Saarela (New York Rangers) scored 53 seconds into the second period to make it 3-1 before the Russians scored four times on Finnish netminder Veini Vehvilainen in a span of seven minutes 17 seconds.

Andrei Svetlakov started the rally with a shorthanded goal and Pavel Kraskovski tied the game on the power play. Vladislav Kamenev (Nashville Predators) scored another goal with the man advantage and Alexander Polunin capped the outburst with an even-strength goal.

Saarela halved the Russian lead early in the third period but Radel Fazleyev tacked on an insurance goal for the Russians, who lead Group B with five points. Finland, which opened the tournament with a victory, has three points.

CZECH REPUBLIC 2, SLOVAKIA 0

Dominik Lakatos and David Pastrnak (Boston Bruins) scored and Vitek Vanecek (Washington Capitals) made 18 saves for the shutout.

Pastrnak opened the scoring with a power-play goal late in the second period at Hartwall Arena. Lakatos added an insurance goal midway through the third period.

Slovakia has split its first two games while the Czechs have one win and an overtime loss.

Sunday's World Juniors Scores: Denmark 2, Switzerland 1 | Slovakia 4, Belarus 2