Second period surge lifts Canada past Finland
Tuesday April 21, 2015
ZUG, Switzerland – Canada overcame a 2-0 deficit to wrap up a perfect 4-0 preliminary round at the World Under-18 Hockey Championships with a 3-2 win over Finland on Tuesday.
Finland’s Aleksi Saarela and Patrik Laine scored first period goals as the Finns outshot Canada 12-7 through the opening 20 minutes.
Canada would respond in the second with three goals in a seven minute span.
Mathew Barzal (Seattle Thunderbirds) got things started on the powerplay at 9:49 with an assist to defenceman Thomas Chabot (Saint John Sea Dogs). Chabot would find the back of the net just over a minute later with Barzal registering the lone assist. Vancouver Giants forward Tyler Benson would give Canada a 3-2 lead at 16:21 with an assist to Glenn Gawdin (Swift Current Broncos).
Goaltender Evan Cormier (Saginaw Spirit) was perfect the rest of the way, turning aside all 21 shots he faced in the final two periods to preserve the 3-2 victory.
The victory gives Canada the top spot in Group B and a berth in the quarter-finals on Thursday against Sweden. The puck drops at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT, live on TSN and RDS, the official broadcasters of Hockey Canada. Check local listings for broadcast times.
Finland finished second in Group B, followed by the Czech Republic and Switzerland. Russia, the United States, Slovakia and Sweden were the top four finishers in Group A, all advancing to the quarter-finals.
Quarter-final schedule (April 23)
United States vs. Czech Republic 8:45 a.m. ET/5:45 a.m. PT
Canada vs. Sweden 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT
Finland vs. Slovakia 12:45 p.m. ET/9:45 a.m. PT
Russia vs. Switzerland 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT
Semifinal match-ups will see the winner of Canada-Sweden face the winner of United States-Czech Republic, and the winner of Russia-Switzerland meet the winner of Finland-Slovakia.
Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team has won three gold medals at the IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship, in 2003, 2008 and 2013, along with one silver (2005) and two bronze (2012, 2014).
For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team, please visit www.hockeycanada.ca, or follow along through social media at www.facebook.com/hockeycanada, www.twitter.com/hockeycanada and www.twitter.com/hc_men.