U.S. shuts out Canada, extends dominance at Para Hockey Cup with 8th straight title
Canada suffered a familiar fate in the Para Hockey Cup final on Saturday as the United States came out on top again for its eighth straight gold medal at the tournament.
The U.S. extended its dominance with a 3-0 victory, going undefeated with a 5-0 record at the four-team competition in Quispamsis, N.B.
Star forwards Declan Farmer and Brody Roybal gave the Americans an early lead with a quick pair of goals, while veteran goaltender Jen Lee made 13 saves for his third shutout of the tournament.
Jack Wallace sealed the win in the game's final minute with a short-handed empty-net goal.
The shots ended up even in a game that was closer than the final score indicated, with Adam Kingsmill making 10 saves for Canada (3-2). The U.S. previously outshot Canada 21-9 in a dominant 5-0 win to close out the preliminary-round on Wednesday.
"Our team turned the page, becoming a bit more of the team we want to be," forward Adam Dixon said in a release. "We did a great job all week of playing our style. We got away from it a bit early on, but as the night went on, we got more and more into our game.
"We had a great time here in New Brunswick, being able to play in front of our Canadian fans."
Farmer opened the scoring on Saturday with a top-shelf snipe just 2:16 into the game after a nifty feed from Roybal, who added the insurance goal just over two minutes later on a two-on-one break.
Wallace set Roybal up with a perfect cross-ice pass as the Americans took control with two goals on their first three shots. Kingsmill gave his team a chance by stopping the rest of the shots he faced, while the Canadians continued to generate scoring chances.
Canada pulled Kingsmill for a six-on-four advantage with 1:06 left in the game after the U.S. was called for too many men, but an unlucky bounce led to a short-handed rush that saw Farmer feed Wallace for the final goal.
"We lived up to the type of identity we are trying to build," Canada head coach Russ Herrington said. "We gave the Americans two early looks to the wrong players and they made us pay for it. We showed a ton of resilience and ultimately, we made it very difficult for our opponent tonight.
"It was a great hockey game between two excellent teams, and I think that most people in the building tonight would agree that we put on a show for them."
Farmer led the tournament in goals (8) and points (16). The U.S. set a tournament record for least goals against, conceding just one in five games.
Canada captain Tyler McGregor and fellow forward Dominic Cozzolino led the team in Quispamsis with 10 points apiece.
The Canadians were searching for their first gold medal at the home tournament since 2013, having lost to the U.S. in the last seven finals.
Canada's 20-man roster featured a mix of veterans and up-and-coming players, including two members making their international debuts — forward Jonathan Daigle and goalie Mitchell Garrett.[SIMILAR[
They cruised past China (2-2) and the Czech Republic (1-4) in the preliminary round before losing the battle of unbeatens to the U.S. on Wednesday. Canada advanced to the final with a 6-0 win over China on Friday.
The Czechs took home bronze for the second straight year by beating China 4-1 for their first win over the tournament.
Canada also fell to the U.S. in the International Para Hockey Cup final last month in Ostrava, Czech Republic, and the worlds final last June in Moose Jaw, Sask.
The Americans beat Canada for gold at the last two Paralympics.
Canada roster
Forwards:
#19 Dominic Cozzolino — Mississauga, Ont.
#15 Jonathan Daigle — Boucherville, Que.
#11 Adam Dixon — Midland, Ont.
#4 James Dunn — Wallacetown, Ont.
#23 Liam Hickey — St. John's
#26 Anton Jacobs-Webb — Gatineau, Que.
#29 Micah Kovacevich — Edmonton
#20 Jacob Leblanc — Moncton, N.B.
#8 Tyler McGregor — Forest, Ont.
#25 Saoud Messaoudi — Saint-Hubert, Que.
#9 Corbyn Smith — Monkton, Ont.
#24 Sam Swafford — Ottawa
Defencemen:
#61 Rob Armstrong — Erin, Ont.
#17 Shawn Burnett — McMasterville, Que.
#2 Rod Crane — Clarksburg, Ont.
#92 Auren Halbert — Calgary
#5 Tyrone Henry — Ottawa
#7 Zach Lavin — Essex, Ont.
Goaltenders:
#33 Mitchell Garrett — Surrey, B.C.
#54 Adam Kingsmill — Smithers, B.C.
