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 Team Canada's Blake Comeau collides with Team Switzerland's Raphael Diaz during first period action at the World Junior Hockey Championships in Vancouver, B.C. Wednesday Dec. 28, 2005.
Game Summaries January 4, 2006 Update: Not much to report the day before the medal games and last day of the 2006 World Junior Championships. In a couple of relegation matches Latvia defeated Norway 4-0, and the Slovaks came back from a 3-1 deficit against the Swiss to achieve a 3-3 tie. In the 5th place game, the Swedes defeated the Czech Republic 3-1. Islanders prospect Jaroslav Mrazek did not register a point or any PIM's in the game.
Canada Excited and Confident Heading into Final Game All tournament long, Canadian Head Coach Brent Sutter has talked about how the next game at hand would be like a Game Seven for his players, emphasizing that they had to take it day by day and not get ahead of themselves. Now it’s indisputably come down to the final Game Seven for his squad, and the Canadians are excited and confident about Thursday’s gold medal clash with the Russians (4 pm PAC, TSN/RDS), a rematch of the 2005 IIHF World Junior Championship final. In fact, the Canadians have played the Russians for gold four times since 1999 and finally picked up the title last year, their first since 1997. “It’s always big whenever you have Canada and Russia,” Sutter said after Wednesday’s practice. “It’s certainly a big rivalry, and it goes all the way back to 1972. People talk about Canada and USA and how that is now, but Canada and Russia is always still there.” Much of the talk on Wednesday afternoon was about how the Canadians plan to shut down Russian superstar Evgeni Malkin. “We have to play the way we’re capable of playing,” said Sutter, who became the winningest coach in Canadian World Junior history with his 11th victory versus Finland. “Hey, we all know [Malkin] is a great hockey player, but we think we have 22 very good hockey players. “We certainly respect our opponents, we certainly respect the players on their team, but we’ve gotten this far by playing a certain way, by being a certain team, so you won’t see a sudden change because of one player.” Defencemen Marc Staal and Ryan Parent have shouldered the responsibility of playing against the other team’s top players so far this tournament, and are looking forward to the challenge Malkin represents. “It’s a big challenge for everyone on the team,” said Parent, a first-round pick of the Nashville Predators. “Playing against one of the top players who’s not in the NHL, it’s going to be a big challenge, and I’m excited. “We just have to keep him to the wall and out of the middle. He’s a bigger guy and might be tougher along the walls, but we just have to get the pucks past him as much as we can." Between the pipes, Justin Pogge has carried the load for Canada and has been a big part of his team’s success. After five games, the Calgary Hitmen netminder boasts a 1.20 GAA and a .933 save percentage. His size, stance, puckhandling, and calm demeanor are reminiscent of a young Martin Brodeur. “You have to be ready for anything,” said Pogge. “The Russians are really skilled and talented, so it’s going to be exciting. If we’re playing our game, they’re not going to get too many shots, and that’s about it.” Heading into Thursday’s showdown, the players truly believe that if they stick to Coach Sutter’s game plan, Canada will have its second gold medal in as many years. “We’re big and we’re fast, and I think we have a little bit more balanced attack,” said forward Ryan O’Marra. “I think they may rely heavily on one player, namely Evgeni Malkin, and I think our tandem of Marc Staal and Ryan Parent can and should be able to shut him down.” Sutter won’t waver in his demands until the final buzzer sounds. “There shouldn’t be any surprises in tomorrow night’s game from our standpoint,” said Sutter. “We have to know they’re going to compete and play hard, but there are certain things that we need to do to be effective, and we’re going to try to accomplish that.”
For the fourth time in the last five years, the gold medal final at the World Junior Hockey Championship will feature Canada and Russia. Canada's win in Grand Forks, North Dakota last year snapped Russia's three year winning streak in the final. Despite their 6-1 win last year the Russians have eight returning players from that game while Canada has none. Home ice has not exactly been an advantage for Canada either against the Russian. The last two times they have met in the final in Canada - Halifax in 2003 and Winnipeg in 1999 - the Russian's have emerged the victors. Corral and contain will have to be Canada's game plan in order to win the gold medal. Led by star forward Evgeni Malkin, the Russians have more individual skill than their opponents. The Canadians will try to limit the Russians' time and space with the puck and take advantage of playing on an ice surface smaller than most of the Russians play on at home. "They're a team that likes to play in the middle of the ice and free flowing," Canadian defenceman Marc Staal said. "We're a team that needs to be working them down low and below the hash marks. "If we do that, I'm sure we'll do well." It will be up to Staal and defensive partner Ryan Parent to try an contain Malkin and the top line for the Russians. "Parent and I will try to do the best we can to shut him down," said Staal. "A guy with that size and skill, you definitely have to be in position all the time." Canada easily handled Russia 8-1 in a pre-tournament exhibition game in Kamloops but Malkin didn't play that night. When asked if Russia can beat Canada on Thursday if it plays to its capabilities, Malkin said, "Easily." The difference in the end will probably be special teams and goaltending. Justin Pogge has faced an average of 18 shots through five games and head coach Brent Sutter wants his team to keep shots against under 25. Both Canada and Russia have given up only six goals in five games in this tournament, so Russian goaltender Anton Khudobin has done his part. He plays for the Saskatoon Blades in the Western Hockey League, so some of Canada's shooters from the WHL know what he's about. Khudobin will also be looking to make up for last year, when he was yanked after giving up three goals in the final. "He's a good goalie, real quick, real acrobatic, but he's also vulnerable at times and you've got to play him hard," Chipchura said. "If you get his confidence up early, he's really hard to beat." "He's a good goalie but if you get some goals on him, he'll kind of shut it down," said Dustin Boyd, who plays for the Moose Jaw Warriors. Canada also wants to make the Russians pay a physical price before they get over the blue-line, keep the forwards to the outside when they do and never give up an odd-man rush. "We can compete with them physically," explained defenceman Andrei Zubarev. "But, on a technical level, we will beat them. Historically the Soviet type of hockey was more skilful. This year is no exception. We will try to beat them by skills." Overall, Russia has won 15 world junior championships, compared to 11 for Canada. Russians Confident Ahead of Junior Final - TSN.ca, January 4, 2005
Finland: With three wins and three losses under their belts, the Finns have star goalie Tuukka Rask to thank for singlehandedly earning them a date in the bronze medal game. In his last two starts, the future Toronto Maple Leaf has saved 92 of 96 shots. Team Finland’s 1-0 victory over Sweden in quarter-final play guaranteed them a shot at a medal of some shade. Blanked by Canada in the semi-finals, the Finns will now look to avenge a 6-5 loss to the Americans on December 28. With a 2.13 GAA and a .937 save percentage, Rask would seem like a lock to start this contest, but Head Coach Hannu Aravirta also might decide the 18-year-old has earned himself a well-deserved rest and hand over the duties to Karri Ramo instead. Ramo played in the previous USA-Finland game, a 6-5 loss for the blue-and-white squad. Finland’s defence is bolstered by Timo Seppanen and Teemu Laakso (both with four points), but the entire group will need to be sharp in order to contain the high-powered American offence. Centre Aki Seitsonen has led the way with four goals, and Lauri Korpikoski has looked dynamic in all of his team’s contests, logging significant minutes in many key situations. Lauri Tukonen has also provided a determined, gritty presence. In terms of special teams, the Finns offer a mixed bag. Their power play has capitalized on seven of 36 chances, good for fourth in the tournament, but Finland’s penalty killing is ranked eighth, just ahead of Norway and Latvia. If the goaltending’s there, the Finns have a chance to win. And they probably want this one a little more than the USA does. USA: The Americans have shown the crowds here in Vancouver at little bit of everything this tournament. Their record of three wins, two losses and one tie is a testament to that fact. After losing 5-1 to the Russians on January 3, the Americans will have to try to get up for this game, and the gold-or-bust mentality may impede them. Goalie Cory Schneider has started five of his of his team’s six contests, and will likely get the call again in this game. The Johnsons (Erik and Jack) continue to lead the way with four and five points respectively on defence. However, Jack Johnson has racked up 43 minutes in penalties and has a plus-minus of -2, ignoble stats that will no doubt delight his many detractors in the Vancouver crowd. Team USA’s offence has been impressive, if you set aside the way the Russians shut them down in the semi-finals. Phil Kessel is tied with Russia’s Evgeni Malkin in the points race (with 10), while Chris Bourque leads the tournament with seven goals. Like their Finnish counterparts, the Americans have had some problems on special teams. They have the third-best power play in the tournament, but their penalty killing is ranked seventh. If the Americans stay out of the box and play a high-tempo, mentally sharp game, they can defeat the Finns.
Canada Goes for Gold After Blanking Finland in Semifinal With a hard-working 4-0 semi-final win over Finland, Canada secured its berth in the gold medal game on Thursday, January 5 (4 pm PT, TSN/RDS). Kris Russell, Blake Comeau, Kris Letang, and Andrew Cogliano scored for Canada, while Justin Pogge made 19 saves for the shutout in his fifth straight start. “We came here to win tonight, and we accomplished that,” said Team Canada Head Coach Brent Sutter. “But we’ve got a lot of work left to do. I want to congratulate Finland. They worked hard.” With 1:02 remaining in the second period, Blake Comeau went hard to the net, backhanded a Marc Staal rebound off Rask’s pads, and then stuffed in his own rebound to make it 2-0 Canada. Ryan O’Marra was sent off for high-sticking early in the third, and during the Finnish power play, Pogge had to be sharp to get his pad on a Jesse Joensuu one-timer from the high slot. Now Canada will look forward to the battle for gold. “Here you have the whole country behind you,” said Comeau. “It’s a good feeling and the atmosphere tonight was special. I think it’s going to be even better in the final.” More... VANCOUVER (CP) - Canada is making a habit of playing in the final of the world junior hockey championship and the 2006 team wants the country to start making a habit out of winning them again. Canada beat Finland 4-0 in the semifinals Tuesday to advance to the gold-medal game against Russia, a 5-1 winner over the United States, on Thursday (TSN, 7 p.m. ET). Canada will be going for gold in the world under-20 men's championship for the fifth straight year - four of them against Russia, including a 6-1 win last winter in Grand Forks, N.D. The last back-to-back world junior titles for Canada were in 1996 and 1997, when the country capped a run of five straight. "The whole country is watching and everyone is counting on us," said forward Blake Comeau. "There's also that pressure in the dressing room so, obviously, it's going to be a huge game for us. "I think everyone is going to be disappointed if we don't end up getting what we want."The Americans and the Finns play for bronze Thursday. Comeau scored a pivotal goal late in the second period to give Canada breathing space against Finland. Kris Russell of the Medicine Hat Tigers, Andrew Cogliano of the University of Michigan and Kris Letang of the Val-d'Or Foreurs scored for a Canadian team that dominated on defence. This Canadian team plays an aggressively defensive game for head coach Brent Sutter as last year's team also did under him. Canada has given up six goals in its five games so far and only one of them was an even-strength goal. "We've got a good chance of winning if we play the way that we have to and not give teams a whole lot," Comeau said. Rask held the Canadians off as long as he could, but the defence in front of him began to collapse. Russell scored late in the first and Comeau late in the second to give Canada momentum heading into the final period. Comeau said Canada's goal was to get more traffic in front of Rask than the Swedes did and capitalize on second and third chances, which he did on his goal. The New York Islanders draft pick caged his own rebound on a Marc Staal shot from the blue-line and waited for Rask to commit low before putting the puck around his outstretched pad to make it 2-0 at 18:58 of the second period. Canada went undefeated at 4-0-0 during the preliminary round and earned the bye to the semifinal by finishing first in Group A. Canada had opened the preliminary round with a 5-1 win over Finland on Dec. 26. Finland finished third in in Group A with a 2-2 record.
It’s time to revive a classic rivalry. Russia earned a date with Canada in the gold medal final with a decisive 5-1 victory over the Americans at GM Place January 3. Led by two goals from Nikolai Kulemin and two assists from Evgeni Malkin, the Russians dominated the pace of play throughout the game. Kulemin’s second goal of the game 1:42 into the second period proved to be the winner. Now the focus shifts to Russia versus Canada in a winner-takes-all scenario. This will be the fifth time since 1999 that the two hockey superpowers have met in the finals. The USA will now play the Finns for bronze on January 5. The sold-out crowd vocally favoured the Russians, and Jack Johnson was booed every time he touched the puck due to his New Year’s Eve elbow on Canada’s Steve Downie. “I want to say thank you to the Canadian crowd,” said Alexander Radulov. “It’s incredible to have 18,000 people cheering Russian goals.” Not surprisingly, there was still some lingering bad blood after the game. “Well, they’ve never really been good sportsmen,” said USA sniper Robbie Schremp of the Russians. “We saw that last year in North Dakota, and you know, it’s not a big surprise, whatever, that’s just the way they act, that’s the way they are. We didn’t expect any different.” The game was also billed as Evgeni Malkin vs. Phil Kessel and in this one Malkin and his team came out on top. Malkin recorded 2 assists in the game while Kessel did not record a point. Coming into the game Kessel led the tournament with 10 points but only one goal. Malkin had 8 points. They are now tied for the scoring lead. Note: Islanders prospect Sergei Ogorodnikov took a 2 minute penalty in the second period for holding. The Russians killed it off. Ogorodnikov has an assist in his five games played in the tournament. More... VANCOUVER (CP) - The excitement that Nikolai Kulemin felt regarding what his team had just accomplished was tempered by the anticipation of the task that lay ahead. Kulemin scored two goals, the second a great individual effort on a power play, as Russia defeated the United States 5-1 on Tuesday night to advance to the gold medal game at the world junior hockey championship. Russia will play Canada in Thursday's final. The Russians used their size and speed to control the play. They were in perpetual motion and moved the puck with authority. "There is definitely a sense of anger and hurt because we came up short for what we came here for," said defenceman Jack Johnson. "This team on paper was as talented, if not more talented, than anyone here. Tempers flared near the end of the game and players from both teams got overly physical. With just over a minute left, all the players on the ice were involved in pushing and shoving while the crowd chanted "U.S. sucks." The Americans had scoring power in Kessel, projected to be the top pick in this year's draft, and Chris Bourque, who had seven goals during the tournament. They also got strong defensive play from Jack and Erik Johnson, plus outstanding goaltending from Schneider. What the Americans seemed to lack was cohesiveness. The forwards often carried the puck, but didn't pass. There were great individual efforts that fizzled because of no support. U.S. coach Walt Kyle said his team still has a chance to take a medal home. "There have been four other (American) teams in 30 years that have won medals at the world junior championship," he said. "If we're fortunate enough to be able to do that, in my opinion, that's a solid accomplishment and I would absolutely be proud of that." The 18,630-seat G.M. Place looked about two-thirds full for the game. The anti-American feelings evident all tournament continued with chants of "Russia, Russia," something rarely heard in a Canadian arena. Kyle admitted he was "disappointed a little bit" that the crowd cheered for the Russians. The fans also loudly booed Jack Johnson whenever he touched the puck. In a game Saturday night, Johnson hit Canada's Steve Downie with an errant elbow. islesinfo.com comments: It makes me sick that Canadian fans acted as they did. That's all I can really say about that. To cheer for the Russians because you didn't like what happened in a game between Canada and the U.S. is just ignorant. Can anyone ever remember a tournament in which the U.S. fans chanted "Canada Sucks?" I guess we just have more class. Canadian fans can really takes things too far sometimes.
USA Edges Czechs 2-1; Advances to Semis vs. Russia Phil Kessel’s two-point performance paced Team USA to a 2-1 win over the Czech Republic at GM Place Monday night, a victory that cements a date for the American side in the tournament’s semi-finals versus Russia January 3. Team USA’s game-winning goal came from Chris Bourque at 11:08 of the first, his seventh of the tournament. American netminder Cory Schneider earned his team’s Player of the Game honours for stopping 30 of 31 shots. More... VANCOUVER (CP) - Phil Kessel and Chris Bourque scored goals, then goaltender Schneider made 30 saves as the United States defeated the Czech Republic 2-1 Monday to advance to the semifinals of the world junior hockey championships. The U.S. will play Russia in Tuesday's semifinal. The Czechs now face Sweden for fifth place on Wednesday. Note: Jaroslav Mrazek did not register a point and had 0 PIM's in the game for the Czech Republic.
As predicted by islesinfo.com, the Americans defeated the Czech Republic in their Quarterfinal match, but the just eaked out a 2-1 win. We were wrong though in the Sweden-Finland Quarterfinal as the Finns held on in a 79 minute deadlock to win it 1-0 in Overtime. Team USA are the favorites in this tournament but haven't played so in the last few games. They will really need to step up their game against the Russians if they hope to snag either a Gold or Silver medal in this tournament. Twice before in tournament history, under the current playoff format, did a team win three playoff games to capture the gold medal, but the path is far more difficult — playing three single-elimination playoff games in a four-day span — than it is for the first-place finisher in each group. The quarter-final between Nordic hockey rivals turned
into a tense waiting game, and Finland outlasted Sweden, triumphing 1-0 on
defenceman Teemu Laakso’s power play goal with 34 seconds left in
overtime. The Finns will face Canada in Tuesday’s first semi-final at GM
Place (16:00 PAC), while Sweden will play for fifth place on Wednesday.
Canada
Wins Round One - Recap of the December 31st, Canada win over USA "All these games now are do-or-die," said Canadian forward Blake Comeau. "The less we play, the better it's going to be for us. One of our goals was to get that bye and get into the semis and we accomplished that. We put ourselves in a good situation, with the two extra days of rest.
Canada Earns Bye to Semi-finals with Big Win Over USA, 3-2 Canada claimed first place in Group A and a bye to the January 3 semi-finals with a 3-2 New Year’s Eve win over the USA in front of a sold-out, ecstatic Pacific Coliseum. Kyle Chipchura scored the winner into an empty net as the Americans pulled goalie Corey Schneider in a late bid for the two points, since a tie would not have sufficed. The Americans will play in the quarter-finals on January 2. At 6:42 of the first period, a beautifully executed 2-on-1 rush with Dustin Boyd and Steve Downie gave Canada a 2-0 lead. Boyd, rushing down left wing, fed the puck over to Downie in the middle, and with USA goaltender Cory Schneider committed, Downie gave it back to Boyd, who coolly fired it into the gaping net. Blake Comeau received the secondary assist. The Canadians faced another big test when Comeau was assessed a double-minor for high-sticking at 7:27, and this time the Americans made them pay. Three minutes later, it was 2-1 after Chris Bourque’s point shot tipped en route to the net and sailed in high to the stick side. Comeau also took a hooking penalty in the closing seconds of the first period but the Canadians killed it off. More... VANCOUVER (CP) - A tie would have been enough, but a physical Canadian team got the win against the United States at the world junior hockey championship Saturday to earn a bye to the semifinal. Canadian captain Kyle Chipchura scored an empty-net winner with 33 seconds remaining in the entertaining game for the 3-2 victory. A tie wasn't enough for the U.S. to finish first in Group A so the Americans pulled goaltender Cory Schneider for an extra attacker in an attempt to get the win. Canada (4-0-0) will play in a semifinal Tuesday (7 p.m. ET) against the winner of Mondays quarter-final between Sweden, second in Group B and Finland, third in Group A (11 p.m. ET). The U.S. plays the Czech Republic, which finished third in Group B, in Monday's other quarter-final (7 p.m. ET). The winner of that game faces Group B winner Russia on Tuesday (11 p.m. ET). The U.S. opened the second period with a two-man advantage as both David Bolland and Blake Comeau were in the box for stick infractions in the last minute of the of the first. Canada killed it off, thanks to a smart save by Pogge on Jack Johnson 36 seconds into the period. Johnson hit the post twice in the second period. Chris Bourque's wobbling shot through traffic beat Pogge at 10:27 for a power-play goal that cut Canada's lead in half. Comeau was serving a double minor for high-sticking. Securing the bye to the semifinal is an major advantage. In addition to a day of rest and facing a semifinal opponent tired from the previous round, Canada avoids the danger of losing a player to injury in a sudden-death quarter-final. ''You get an extra day of rest, more time to prepare against your opponent and obviously your opponent is going to be a lot more tired than you so it's a pretty big deal,'' Canadian forward Ryan O'Marra said. While the U.S. has an abundance of speed and skill, Canada was better in the trenches. The Canadians hit and forechecked the Americans hard in their own zone to keep the puck there and contain the U.S. ''Their D were blowing snow when they were going into the corner and that helped us on our attack,'' O'Marra said. ''That helped us on our attack. We kept forechecking, kept it down low five-on-five and they couldn't handle us.''
The Russians clinched the B Pool by spanking the Czech Republic 7-2. Russia gets a bye into the Semi-final round and will now play the winner of the USA vs. Czech Republic playoff game. Neither Russia's Sergei Ogorodnikov or the Czechs Jaroslav Mrazek registered a point or PIM's in the game. In other action Finland defeated Switzerland to finish third in the A Pool with a 2-2 record. Sweden drubbed Slovakia 6-0 to improve to 3-1 and second place in the B Pool. The winner of Sweden vs. Finland playoff game will faceoff against Canada. It was a good showing for Switzerland who finished 1-2-1 and with a better showing against Finland could have been facing Sweden in the first playoff round. Slovakia had yet another disappointing tournament, finishing 1-3 and only defeating Latvia. islesinfo.com's prediction: Team USA will go on to defeat the Czech Republic and face Russia in the next round, which should be another great matchup. Sweden will probably win over Finland and face the Canadians. So right now it's looking like Canada will either face Russia or USA in the finals. Canada's already defeated the U.S. but it was after the Americans pulled their goaltender to avoid a tie.
Energetic Swiss Surprise USA En Route to Tie, 2-2 Despite being outshot and outmatched, Team Switzerland gave the Americans all they could handle in an exciting, come-from-behind 2-2 tie at the Pacific Coliseum December 30. After three games, Team USA sports a record of two wins and one tie, while the Swiss currently have three points in Group A play. Both teams will play their final Round Robin games December 31, with the Swiss taking on Finland while Team USA suits up against Canada. More... VANCOUVER (CP) - It was a tie that felt like a loss for the U.S at the world junior hockey championships on Friday night. The U.S. saw a 2-0 lead evaporate as Switzerland scored a pair of third-period, power-play goals for a 2-2 draw. The Americans (2-0-1) now must beat Canada (3-0-0) Saturday night if they hope to finish first in Pool A at the 10-team tournament and advance directly to the semifinal. Defenceman Erik Johnson agreed the glass was half empty for the U.S. after the tie. "It hurts," said Johnson, expected to be among the top three players taken in this spring's NHL draft. "We're supposed to beat a team like Switzerland. We just have to get ready for tomorrow." islesinfo.com comment: Looks like the U.S. team got caught looking ahead to the big Canada showdown a little early, losing a 2-0 third period lead. The Swiss have really improved their hockey program and gave Canada a tough game the other night losing only 4-3. It still should be a great game Saturday night between the U.S. and Canada. USA has been the favorite thus far entering the tournament, but Canada has been just as good to this point, as well as Russia.
The Czech Republic improved to a 2-1 record by defeating Slovakia 5-3. Jaroslav Mrazek was scoreless in the game and had 0 PIM's. In a couple of blowouts, Sweden(2-1 record) smacked Latvia 10-2 behind a huge game by 2006 draft prospect D Nicklas Backstrom who recorded a hat trick, and Finland(1-2 record) clobbered Norway 9-1. This really only proves that Norway and Latvia had absolutely no business being in this tournament, but they needed a total of 10 teams and those are the two that qualified. I'm surprised that the Germans did not qualify and probably would have iced a team a little better than the bottom dwellers we've seen here.
Canada Stays Perfect with Blanking of Norway, 4-0 VANCOUVER (CP) - Canada's improved performance in a 4-0 win over Norway at the world junior hockey championship Thursday got lost in the massive number of penalties called in the game. The Canadians (3-0) secured at least second place in Group A with the victory. The host team can turn its attention to a long-awaited showdown with the U.S. to conclude the preliminary round on Saturday. First place in the pool will likely be on the line and the team that earns it gets a bye to the semifinals. The Americans (2-0) take on the Swiss (1-1) on Friday, while Canada has the day off. ''We're 3-0, which is what our goal is,'' Canadian forward Ryan O'Marra said. ''Hopefully the fans will get a better game against the U.S. I think our preparation in the next 24 hours is crucial.'' Canada’s Luc Bourdon led the way with a goal and an assist and Jonathan Towes added two helpers. Bourdon was also named Player of the Game for Canada. Blake Comeau and O'Marra did not register a point in the game, though O'Marra was involved in an incident with 16 seconds left that saw him get called 2 minutes for checking to the head and a 10 minute misconduct. Seconds after that all hell broke loose and many penalties were assessed to each teams.
The Russians defeated Latvia tonight 3-1 to improve to a 3-0 record and have almost wrapped up first place in Group B. Sergei Ogorodnikov did not register a point in the win for Russia.
Canada Earns Narrow Victory Over Swiss, 4-3 “In the first ten minutes we were nonchalant,” said Canadian Head Coach Brent Sutter. “When you have a start you don’t want to have, you have to learn from that. As far as our game plan, it gets back to not executing the way our coaching staff would like. We’ve got to get better and we will get better.” “This team we played tonight played well,” conceded Sutter. “They’re a big team that can skate.” In a penalty-filled first period, Team Canada’s Tom Pyatt and Ryan O’Marra were both sent off at 4:48 for tripping and holding respectively. Though it looked like Canada was out-hit in the first frame, the period’s biggest hit came at the 14-minute mark, as Ryan O’Marra plastered Dario Burgler to the ice. Blake Comeau assisted on Canada's third goal that was scored by Tom Pyatt. With the win, Head Coach Brent Sutter set
a new Team Canada coaching benchmark with his eighth consecutive victory,
moving him past Don Hay. More... Ryan O'Marra continued to deliver the highlight hits as he hammered Dario Burgler in the neutral zone at the three-quarter mark of the opening period. Canada got off to a shaky start in the opening minutes, fumbling the puck on the offensive blue-line twice on the same shift and looking unorganized in their own zone on one occasion. O'Marra and Tom Pyatt took concurrent minor penalties to give Switzerland a two-man advantage. Other Action Sergei Ogorodnikov registered 2 PIM's in Russia's 6-2 win over Slovakia. Jaroslav Mrazek registered another 4 PIM's in the Czech Republic's 3-2 loss to Sweden. In the late game, Blake Wheeler scored two goals and helped Team USA improve to 2-0 with a narrow 6-5 win over Finland who drops to 0-2 in the Tournament. Already it looks like the three top teams in the WJC's are USA, Canada and Russia.
Canada cruises to win over Finland VANCOUVER (CP) - Dustin Boyd made an international hockey debut to remember as Canada opened defence of its gold medal at the world junior hockey championship with a 5-1 win over Finland on Monday. Canada is a young squad with over half the team 18 or under, but it was the 19-year-olds who led the effort as Blake Comeau of the Kelowna Rockets had a goal and an assist and captain Kyle Chipchura of the Prince Albert Raiders and David Bolland of the London Knights also scored. Finnish forward Mikko Lehtonen overskated the puck in the defensive zone and Comeau made good on the gift by pouncing on the loose puck going in alone upstairs on a sprawling Rask at 15:52 of the first period to make it 2-0. Ryan O'Marra assisted on the goal. Boyd dove for a rebound off the post on a shot from Comeau and knocked it past Rask at 14:27 of the second period to stake Canada to a 4-0 cushion. The game got a little too wide open for coach Brent Sutter's taste at times during the second period, but was pleased his team reined it in. ''It's an instinct, sometimes as a player when you get up a few goals you can get a little too fancy and get away from your game plan, but for the most part it was very brief tonight,'' Sutter said. ''We kept the puck going ahead tonight. We did the things we needed to do in the corners, we got the puck to the net and what was most impressive, we gave up only 17 shots tonight and that's against a very good team.'' More... The ice seemed rough and bumpy at times, and that had an
effect. At 15:52, Canada went up 2-0 when Blake Comeau pounced on an
unexpected loose puck just inside the Finnish blueline and raced in alone
on Rask. The Canadian forward’s shot flipped up and over the goalie, and
just landed inside the goal line. Comeau is playing on a line with Boyd and Guillaume Latendresse. Bourque Nets Five in USA Win Over Norway Chris Bourque scored five goals and Phil Kessel had five assists to lead the United States in an 11-2 romp over Norway Monday night at the world junior hockey championship. Russia 5, Sweden 1 Sergei Ogorodnikov recorded an assist and was a +1 as the Russians easily handled the Swedes. Czechs 5, Latvia 1 Jaroslav Mrazek was a +1 in the game and recorded 4 PIM's. Canada 8 - Russia 1 Pre-Competition Canada dominates Russia in exhibition play. Canadian forwards Blake Comeau and Andrew Cogliano each bolstered the attack with a pair of assists. Canadian Head Coach Brent Sutter said he was happy with his team, which seemed to come to life midway through the first period. “I thought after the first ten or twelve minutes we settled down. Once we got into the flow of the game and started playing our system, we seemed to build off that,” said Sutter. Responding to a reporter’s suggestion that the Russians may have given up after Canada took a 4-1 lead, Sutter was stolid: “I don’t care what they do. I don’t care whether it’s an exhibition game or not. It’s important to gain momentum.”
Sweden 2 - United States 3 Pre-Competition USA EDGES SWEDEN IN PRE-TOURNAMENT ACTION: Phil Kessel has been dubbed America’s answer to Sidney Crosby, and he didn’t disappoint in the USA’s 3-2 exhibition victory over Sweden on December 21. The University of Minnesota center scored the winning goal on the power play with 7:06 remaining in the third period. Kessel electrified the crowd of 2,826 at Victoria’s Bear Mountain Arena as he picked up the puck from Bobby Ryan, went one-on-one with a Swedish defender, and zinged home a shot from the faceoff circle to goalie Daniel Larsson’s left. “I don’t know if the goalie ever saw it,” said Ryan. “It was an NHL-caliber goal.”
Canada 2 - Czech Republic 1 Pre-Competition It was a home game of sorts for one Canadian forward. Blake Comeau of the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets showed a feisty style in front of his 6,109 hometown fans, throwing several good bodychecks along the way. Comeau was happy with the team’s performance. “We said we wanted to treat this like the first game of the tournament, and I thought we came out and gave it a good effort,” said Comeau. “There are some things we have to work on and we will tomorrow in practice.” The Czech Republics Jaroslav Mrazek took a hooking penalty in the first period which led to a power play goal by Canada's Jonathan Toews. Islanders prospect Ryan O'Marra also saw action in the tuneup. He took a charging penalty in the third period with the score tied 1-1. The Czechs could not capitalize. O'Marra's Erie Otter teammate Michael Blunden, a sniper that is a Chicago Blackhawk draft pick, fired home the game winner with 50 seconds remaining in the game.
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1998-2006 Tom Mascioli
