Canada stays undefeated at world juniors with 6-3 win over Finland
Ridly Greig was a little banged up after helping Canada to a big win at the world junior hockey championship on Monday.
Not only did the Ottawa Senators' prospect score and contribute an assist in the 6-3 victory over Finland, he blocked some big shots when the Canadians ran into third-period penalty trouble.
“Whatever it takes to win, whatever it takes to do anything for the boys or kind of get some momentum, I’m going to do it," Greig said. "Whether it’s stand in front of a slap shot, I’m going to do it.”
Special teams were the difference maker on Monday, with the Canadians going 2-for-2 on the power play while Finland was 1-for-5.
The Finns got their second stretch of five-on-three hockey with less than five minutes left on the clock when William Dufour joined Ethan del Mastro in the penalty box.
Finland pulled goalie Leevi Merilainen just as del Mastro's penalty expired and, with the extra man, Roby Jarventie put a puck in off the glove of Canadian goalie Dylan Garand to make it 5-3.
Dufour sealed the score at 6-3 with an empty-net strike 18:13 into the third.
The Finns had a prime opportunity to eat into Canada's lead with a minute-long two-man advantage midway through the final period.
Donovan Sebrango was sent to the box for high-sticking and less than a minute later, teammate Will Cuylee was tossed from the game for a knee-on-knee hit.
Canada weathered being down two men, then chewed through the four remaining minutes of the major penalty without conceding a goal.
“I thought our penalty kill was elite today, so many guys blocking shots. And that’s a great sign for a team that’s trying to win something," said Canada's captain Mason McTavish, who had a goal and two assists in the win.
“Finland, they’re a great team. I think they were 3-0 coming into this, their power play is ridiculous. So the fact that our PK stood up there with one of the best power plays in the tournament is huge for us.”
Connor Bedard scored and contributed an assist for Canada (4-0-0), while Dufour, Brennan Othmann and Tyson Foerester also found the back of the net. Olen Zellweger tallied three assists.
Joakim Kemell scored and contributed an assist for Finland (3-1-0) and Samuel Helenius rounded out the scoring.
Canada's Garand made 22 saves and Merilainen stopped 31 of 36 shots for the Finns.
The result was an important one for Canada, who finished the preliminary round atop Group A. They'll face Group B's Switzerland (1-3-0) in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Switzerland clinched its spot in the quarterfinals earlier on Monday with a 3-2 win over Austria (0-0-4).
Finland was disappointed with Monday's result, said head coach Antti Pennanen.
“It was OK but it wasn’t enough. And we were angry after the game, that’s for sure," he said.
A big goal early in the third whittled the Finns' deficit to 5-2.
Toronto Maple Leafs' prospect Topi Niemela fired a shot from the point and Kemell tipped it in from the slot for his third goal of the tournament.
Canada called for a coach's challenge, arguing that the puck had gone off the netting before falling back to the ice ahead of the goal.
“The guys on the ice are generally the ones who can tell you what’s going on," said head coach Dave Cameron. “My players were 100 per cent sure it went in (to the net). So you trust your players.”
After an extended video review, officials determined the goal was good. The Canadians did not receive a delay-of-game penalty because officials said the review was "inconclusive."
The Canadians dominated the middle frame, outshooting the Finns 20-5 and taking a 5-1 lead.
McTavish gave his country its second power-play goal of the game 16:17 into the period after Finland's Rubin Rafkin was called for interference.
Zellweger sent the Anaheim Ducks' prospect a pass from inside the blue line and McTavish uncorked a one-timer that flew over Merilainen's shoulder stick side.
Thirty-one seconds into the second, Canada went up 4-1 after the Finnish goalie bobbled a shot by Joshua Roy.
Greig slid in on one knee to put the rebound in the back of the net with his third goal of the tournament.
Canada went into the first intermission up 3-1 after a late Finland goal.
A knot of players battled for the puck behind the Canadian net and Finland's Kalle Vasisanen came up with it. He sent a pass to Helenius at the high hash marks and the L.A. Kings' prospect got a shot up and over Garland's shoulder with 57 seconds left in the period.
Bedard put away his third goal of the tournament in memorable fashion 17:19 into the first.
Canada was penned in its own zone for an extended period, but the 17-year-old phenom showed no signs of exhaustion when he collected a cross-ice pass from McTavish at the blue line and sped into the faceoff circle.
He then ripped a blistering shot past Merilainen, pinging the puck off the inside of the crossbar to make it 3-0.
A power-play strike boosted Canada's lead to 2-0 midway through the opening frame after Helenius was called for slashing.
Greig's shot ricocheted off Merilainen's pad but Foerester was in position to poke the rebound in from the top of the crease as he slid past the net.
Finland got off to a strong start, outshooting the host nation 4-0 across the first five minutes of the game.
It was Canada that opened the scoring, though, 6:21 into the first.
Defenceman Zellweger fired a long bomb from inside the blue line and Othmann batted it in past Merilainen.
The play was reviewed for a potential high stick but the goal — Othmann's second of the tournament — was determined to be good after officials reviewed the video.
The preliminary round wrapped Monday night with Group B's Sweden (3-1-0) registering a 4-2 victory over Germany (2-2-0).
Sweden will battle Latvia (1-2-1) in the quarterfinals on Wednesday while Germany will face Finland.
The reigning champion Americans (4-0-0) also went undefeated in round-robin action and will play Czechia (1-2-1), the country commonly known as the Czech Republic, in the quarterfinals.
The semifinals are scheduled for Friday and the medal games will go Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 15, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A 'tragedy that can't be measured': North Bay's forever chemical problem is also the rest of Canada's
For decades, North Bay, Ontario's water supply has harboured chemicals associated with liver and developmental issues, cancer and complications with pregnancy. It's far from the only city with that problem.
opinion How to use your credit card as a powerful wealth-building tool
Irresponsibly using a credit card can land you in financial trouble, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew says when used properly, it can be a powerful wealth-building tool that can help grow your credit profile and create new opportunities.
Questlove was not happy with Drake and Kendrick Lamar's beef: 'Nobody won the war'
While some may have been excited and/or amused by the diss-track feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, the man many consider to be an elder statesman of hip-hop appears less than enthused about it.
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Bouchard lifts Edmonton Oilers to 4-3 overtime win over Canucks in Game 2
Evan Bouchard scored 5:38 into overtime and the Edmonton Oilers bounced back for a 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs on Friday.
A renewed Russian offensive on Kharkiv in northeast Ukraine forces some 1,700 civilians to flee
Russian forces began a renewed ground assault in Ukraine's northeast, killing and injuring several people and forcing more than 1,700 civilians to evacuate from the Kharkiv region, officials said Saturday.
Israel orders new evacuations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah as it prepares to expand operations
Israel ordered new evacuations in Gaza's southern city of Rafah on Saturday, forcing tens of thousands more people to move as it prepares to expand its operation and adding that it is also moving into an area in northern Gaza where Hamas has regrouped.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.