USA 4 CANADA 2
HELSINKI – Louis Belpedio and Auston Matthews had back-to-back goals late in the third period as the United States beat Canada 4-2 on Saturday in both teams’ first preliminary games of the world junior hockey championship.
Colin White and Zach Werenski also scored for the Americans (1-0), while Alex Nedeljkovic made 25 saves for the win.
Matt Barzal and Dylan Strome supplied the offence as Canada (0-1) begins its title defence of last year’s world junior title. Mason McDonald stopped 21 shots in net.
Canada opened scoring five minutes into the second period. Julien Gauthier was instrumental in the play, getting a partial breakaway and then passing to Rourke Chartier. As Chartier got off a shot, Gauthier fell to the ice and slid into the boards, scrambling back toward the goal line.
The rebound went off Nedeljkovic and bounced to Gauthier, who was still on his knees from his fall. He made a heads-up play, passing the puck from his knees back to the trailing Barzal, who put the puck into the open net.
White tied it 1-1 just over 11 minutes later on assists from Sonny Milano and Christian Dvorak.
© 2015 The Canadian Press
Baby it's cold outside
Canada has not been first in hockey for a while outside of a lucky win last year. But hey they all count.
Speed and size are not mutually exclusive.
Does anyone other than a few parents, TSN and sports broadcasters everywhere that think everyone in Canada is hockey mad care about this event.
MY hand is up.
This is probably the STUPIDEST comment you've posted all year. It took 360 days but it finally came. What a MORONIC statement! Go back under your rock…PUTZ!
Anon # 4 …… If you don't like anything that is on here and you don't cheer for your own Country, then grab a plane and get the hell out of here.
Trolls are so pathetic, what a sad life they lead.
get used to losing to the u.s.
those people?
We cheer for Canada…just not in the bush league sports.
These games double CFL audience. Does anyone care about the CFL outside SK?