The U.S. came from behind, while Sweden and Canada Black scored last-minute winners on a wild day on the West Coast
United States 5, Finland 3
• Kamil Bednarik scored on the power play with 8:28 left to help the U.S. come from behind.
• Bednarik and James Hagens finished with a goal and an assist each for the Americans.
• Roope Vesterinen had a goal and an assist for Finland.
Sweden 3, Canada White 2
• Linus Eriksson scored with 44.7 seconds left to give the Swedes the win.
• Miguel Marques (Prince George, B.C./Lethbridge, WHL) and Gavin Hodnett (Winnipeg, Man./Edmonton, WHL) had the Canadian goals.
• David Egorov (Manotick, Ont./Hamilton, GOJHL) made 33 saves in the loss.
Canada Black 4, Canada Red 3
• Zayne Parekh (Nobleton, Ont./Saginaw, OHL) scored twice in the final seven minutes, including the winner with 40.6 seconds left, to give Canada Black a comeback win.
• Louka Cloutier (Sherbrooke, Que./Magog, LDHM18AAAQ) made 40 saves for Canada Black.
• Justin Poirier (Valleyfield, Que./Baie-Comeau, QMJHL) and Clarke Caswell (Brandon, Man./Swift Current, WHL) rounded out the scoring for Canada Black.
• Tarin Smith (Porcupine Plain, Sask./Everett, WHL), Michael Misa (Oakville, Ont./Saginaw, OHL) and Tomas Mrsic (Surrey, B.C./Medicine Hat, WHL) provided the offence for Canada Red.
Next games – Friday, November 4:
• United States vs. Czechia – 7 p.m. PT (Sungod Arena)
• Canada Black vs. Finland – 7 p.m. PT (Langley Events Centre)
Quotes:
“We did not play a good 60 minutes [of hockey]. Our puck management was not where it should be, and we did not compete how we should have competed. We competed in some situations but not for the full 60 minutes.”
– Canada White head coach Bruce Richardson (Ville St-Pierre, Que./Blainsville-Boisbriand, QMJHL) on his team’s effort.
“Putting on the Maple Leaf is an unbelievable feeling. It is a dream come true. We should have come out a little stronger in the first period. We got better in the second and third, but we did not come out and play the way we should have. We need to bounce back and play the way we need to to beat Team Canada Black on Saturday.”
– Marques on what is needed moving forward in the tournament to find success.
“We deserved better. We dominated the game for 40 minutes and have to give [Cloutier] credit. We got away from our gameplan a little bit, not chipping pucks in with a one-goal lead. The structure, work ethic and commitment was there, but we need to bear down on our chances and learn how to win.”
– Canada Red head coach Greg Walters (Toronto, Ont./Owen Sound, OHL) on coming up short.
“We worked it well on the power play and with screens in front I was able to get a good shot off. We played well in the defensive zone but could have been better, for sure. It is not the outcome we were looking for, but we played well. We need to go north with the puck more, be more crisp and we will find success.”
– Smith on finding the back of the net but ultimately coming up short.
“We had a slow start, whether it was nerves or not getting to our identity as quick as we like. I think that we gained confidence as the game went on. I thought that the third period was our best period and I am really proud of the group to find a way in the end. We knew [Cloutier] was going to give us a chance to win, he was our MVP without question.”
– Canada Black head coach Mark O’Leary (Owen Sound, Ont./Moose Jaw, WHL) on his team finding a way to win.
“Wearing that jersey is an honour; it is awesome. Without my teammates, those pucks do not go in the net. I do not think we played a great game tonight, I think moving forward we will find our way and pick it up. We are having fun though.”
– Parekh on wearing the Maple Leaf and scoring twice in the third period.
TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada will broadcast the bronze medal and gold medal games from the Langley Events Centre; please check local listings for details.
All preliminary-round games are livestreamed at HockeyCanada.ca.
For more information on the 2022 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, please visit HockeyCanada.ca or follow through social media on Facebook and Twitter.
