Heatley, Doan pace Canada past Finland at World Hockey Championship

cp.org — Tue, 13 May 2008 01:51:00 -0400

HALIFAX - Nothing less than perfection will do now.

If Canada is to leave the IIHF World Hockey Championship with another gold medal, it's going to do so with a perfect 9-0 record for the second straight year.

Shane Doan and Dany Heatley each scored twice Monday as the Canadians defeated Finland 6-3 in a matchup of unbeaten teams. It will take three more wins in a row for O Canada to be played after the gold medal game this weekend in Quebec City.

"You never want to back your way in," said Doan. "I think it's a big thing to go the way that we've done it. We want to keep going."

The Canadian team seems to be gaining confidence with each passing game.

The players looked extremely comfortable and relaxed from the drop of the puck against Finland. The Finns sensed that and figured they would need some perfection of their own.

"First of all, they are a better team," said forward Teemu Selanne. "I think they had better energy and that combination is tough to beat. They really took advantage of their scoring chances and we made too many mistakes and it cost us goals. We know against Canada we can't do those things.

"There are a lot of good things in our game too but not good enough to beat a team like Canada. You have to play an almost perfect game to beat them and we didn't get that tonight."

Ryan Getzlaf and Patrick Sharp also scored while Pascal Leclaire made 24 saves in goal for Canada, which has now won 15 straight world championship games dating back to last year.

This win was particularly important because it gave them a weaker opponent in Wednesday's quarter-final. The Canadians will face Norway, which advanced after Latvia was beaten 5-3 by Germany on Monday night.

Antti Pihlstrom scored twice while Tuomo Ruutu had the other for the Finns, who will face the speedy Americans in the quarter-finals.

The U.S. outplayed Canada when the teams faced each other earlier in the event so the home side was happy to avoid them.

"We know how good the Americans are," said Doan. "We didn't want to have to play them again. In a sudden death game anything can happen."

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was among an announced Metro Centre crowd of 9,178. He had to call Doan during last year's world championship in Moscow after the captain had been drawn into a debate by politicians on Parliament Hill.

It's a reminder of how little controversy has followed this team so far.

Canada had tight games early in the tournament against the U.S. and Norway but has had no off-ice distractions. On top of that, their last two games have been the best two of the tournament.

"We wanted to play well through our first six (games) and get better every night," said Heatley. "I think we've done a pretty good job of that. Now we've got do-or-die here the next couple days."

There's no one better than Heatley.

He has a tournament-leading nine goals so far and is only two behind the modern day record Eric Lindros set in 1993. That's well within reach if Canada ends up playing three more games.

As a team, the Canadians lead the tournament with 35 goals through six games. If they can keep scoring at a pace of roughly six a game, they will be awfully tough for anybody to beat.

"We're not going to score seven goals to beat a team like Canada," said Finnish coach Doug Shedden.

The Finns were playing for the second consecutive day and were without forward Olli Jokinen and defenceman Anssi Salmela, who were each suspended after receiving match penalties during a 3-2 win over the Americans on Sunday.

A rematch of last year's gold-medal game was as physical as any Canada has played so far in this tournament, particularly in the first period when Finland was strong on the forecheck.

"We got pushed harder in this game than we've gotten pushed all tournament," said Canadian coach Ken Hitchcock. "There were times when the game was a bit unnerving for us becuase we had a lot of pressure on us."

The Canadians couldn't have asked for a better start.

The prime minister had barely sat down in his seat before Getzlaf got him out of it. The team's top centre beat two defenders and lifted the puck over Niklas Backstrom just 33 seconds into the game.

Pihlstrom and Doan traded short-handed goals before the period was over and Finland came out strong after the first intermission. Hitchcock identified that as a key moment in the game because his team was able to weather the pressure until Heatley made it 3-1 at 10:17 of the second period.

"Finland was really taking it to us at the beginning of the second, their quickness on the puck was a handful for us," said Hitchcock. "I thought once the third goal went it, we started to stabilize our game and it was a good sign."

Sharp all but put it away with Canada's second short-handed goal of the game. He showed great speed in blowing past Finnish defender Ville Koistinen along the wing before beating Backstrom at 18:12 to make it 4-1.

"We scored key goals at key times," said Heatley. "Doaners goal was huge for us short-handed and Sharpie's was as well. Special teams and the short-handed guys have done a great job all tournament."

Hitchcock was unhappy that the team allowed Finland to score twice in the third period when the game was out of reach and says his team still needs to get better.

That said, it's hard to ignore the fact that Canada is probably the team to beat in this event.

"I think that's the confidence that we have right now," said Hitchcock. "We know if we play the right way we can beat anybody."

In other games Monday, Russia defeated Switzerland 5-3, Denmark upset Belarus 3-2 in overtime and the U.S. beat Norway 9-1.

Americans satisfied after goal judge gets fired for mistaken goal

cp.org — Mon, 12 May 2008 23:07:00 -0400

American coach John Tortorella thinks the IIHF did the right thing when it suspended the video judge who mistakenly allowed a goal that never went in.

The play happened on Sunday night when Finland's Ville Koistinen was credited for a third-period goal that the U.S. said went through the side of the net. It was reviewed by a judge in the Metro Centre and ruled a goal, even though replays supported the Americans' claim.

Finland went on to rally and beat the Americans 3-2. The IIHF acknowledged the mistake after the game and said the judge was out for the remainder of the tournament.

"Something like that shouldn't happen," Tortorella said Monday. "The person that is responsible should be out."

The American coach doesn't think his team deserved to win the game but felt bad for the players who had to see it decided like that.

The guy who was in net for the phantom goal didn't seem too upset a day later.

"That's a big goal to mess up on," said Robert Esche. "If it's a mistake, it's a mistake. We make a lot of them as players."

The IIHF has a team of goal judges that it uses at big events like this one. They each have access to four or five different angles of each goal, plus anything the TV broadcasters shoot.

IIHF President Rene Fasel declined comment.

BIG DOUGH: Robert Esche is in no rush to get back to the NHL.

The 30-year-old goaltender spent the year with AK Bars Kazan in the Russian Super League and has already come to a verbal agreement on a new two-year contract to play for St. Petersburg in the new league that will start in that country next season.

It's no mystery why - money.

Esche says his verbal deal is worth US$1.8 million per year and includes incentives that could push it beyond that. The team will also pay most of his taxes.

"I'm just hoping they send the paperwork over," said Esche.

The St. Petersburg team is owned by billionaire oil tycoon Alex Medvedev, who is the brains behind the new league. Medvedev will play in an alumni game in Quebec City on Thursday.

Esche had a good season in Kazan, where he put up a 15-2-2 record with four shutouts in the regular season.

He appeared in 186 career NHL games for Phoenix and Philadelphia before moving to Russia.

ILYA THE GOON: Russian star Ilya Kovalchuk is known for scoring goals, but his tussle with Swedish defenceman Anton Stralman at the IIHF world hockey championship this week was not his first on-ice altercation.

Hockeyfights.com lists three fights in Kovalchuk's NHL career - all judged by viewers as wins.

He scored a knockdown win over Buffalo's Drew Stafford this season and got the edge on Sean Avery of the New York Rangers in 2007. He also got a decision against Mike Comrie in 2003. Not bad for a player who scored 52 goals this season.

Asked in jest if he would drop the gloves again at the worlds, Kovalchuk said with a smile: "We'll see. Maybe after the final, after the last whistle."

The bout with Stralman was more of a wrestling match, but Kovalchuk ended up on top. Kovalchuk was grabbed by Stralman as he rushed in after teammate Alexei Morozov was levelled by a hit from Sweden's Douglas Murray. All three players were ejected from the 3-2 Russian win.

HALL OF FAME: The IIHF will induct seven new members to its Hall of Fame on Thursday at the Pepsi Colisee in Quebec City, including the first three women players - Canada's Geraldine Heaney and Angela James and American Cammi Granato.

Also going in are Mario Lemieux, Russian great Igor Larionov and Philippe Bozon of France, as well as American builder Art Berglund. Lemieux is unlikely to attend with his Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL Eastern Conference final.

Russia defeats Switzerland 5-3 to set up quarter-final rematch

cp.org — Mon, 12 May 2008 19:31:00 -0400

QUEBEC - Unbeaten Russia got first-period goals from Dmitry Kalinin, Alexander Ovechkin and Maxim Sushinsky and went on to defeat Switzerland 5-3 on Monday at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.

Russia finished first in its group and dropped Switzerland to fourth place, so the two teams will meet again in the quarter-finals. The second-place Czech Republic will meet third-place Sweden in the other quarter-final in Quebec City on Wednesday.

Switzerland, which did not get a shot on goal until 10:07 into the game, trailed 4-0 going into the third period, but then got early goals from Rafaele Sannitz and Julien Vauclair to keep it close.

The Russians dazzled with their quick puck movement and precision passing for two periods, penetrating a Swiss defensive wall that often had five players clogging the neutral zone. Russia had a 37-22 shot advantage overall before 8,286 at the Pepsi Colisee.

Kalinin crept in from the point to convert a nice cross-ice feed from Danis Zaripov at 15:21. Ovechkin tipped Ilya Kovalchuk's point shot in from the slot on a power play at 17:49 and Sushinsky breezed past defenceman Beat Forster and beat Anaheim Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller at 18:45.

Sergei Fedorov scored with Alexander Semin standing in Hiller's crease 10:27 into the second frame.

The Swiss played a more aggressive game in the third and Sannitz scored on his team's first power play chance 32 seconds in on a point blast that sailed past Evgeny Nabokov. Then Vauclair made an end-to-end rush short-handed and beat Nabokov with an off-wing wrist shot at 5:30.

Hiller was pulled for an extra attacker with three minutes left to play and Sushinsky got his second of the game into the empty net at 17:25. One minute later, Romano Lemm banged in a goal for the Swiss on a feed from Andres Ambuhl.

United States 9 Norway 1

At Halifax, the United States wrapped up its qualifying round schedule with a 9-1 rout of Norway.

New York Rangers forward Brandon Dubinsky had a hat trick as the Americans scored three times in each period to bury the overmatched Norwegians.

With the win, the U.S. (3-2) locked up third place in Pool F while Norway fell to 1-4.

United States wraps up qualifying round with 9-1 rout of Norway

cp.org — Mon, 12 May 2008 18:25:00 -0400

HALIFAX - The United States wrapped up its qualifying round schedule with a 9-1 pounding of Norway at the IIHF World Hockey Championship on Monday.

New York Rangers forward Brandon Dubinsky had a hat trick as the Americans scored three times in each period to bury an overmatched Norwegian team.

With the win, the U.S. (3-2) locked up third place in Pool F. The Americans had already earned a quarter-final berth prior to the game, and will next play the loser of Monday's matchup between Canada and Finland.

Norway (1-4) must hope Latvia loses to Germany in regulation on Monday night to earn the last quarter-final spot for Group F.

The U.S. dominated the opening 20 minutes against Norway and was rewarded with three goals, including a pair just 63 seconds apart.

Dubinsky, with his first of the tournament, opened the scoring at 11:12 as he took a pass in the slot from Adam Burish and fired the puck underneath Norwegian netminder Pal Grotnes.

Just over a minute later, Brown potted his fourth of the tournament as he skated into the slot and drilled a shot glove-side past Grotnes.

In the final minute, the U.S. found the back of the net again as Patrick Kane tallied his third of the tournament on the power play. Zach Parise set up the Calder Trophy nominee with a perfect pass across the crease.

Six minutes into the second period, Dubinsky scored his second of the game as he made good on a rebound attempt from in close.

Norway finally found the scoresheet midway through the period during a two-man advantage. Defenceman Mats Trygg blasted a bullet shot high over the glove of American goaltender Robert Esche.

The U.S., which struggled to hold leads in its last two games, wasn't fazed by the goal, as Paul Martin responded with his first of the tournament on a nice individual effort three minutes later.

Just 59 seconds later, Patrick O'Sullivan found Parise in front for a power-play marker and a 6-1 lead.

In the third, Brown notched his second of the game as he came out from behind the Norwegian net and went five-hole on Grotnes.

Three minutes later, Kane set up a highlight-reel goal, as the 19-year-old skated out from his own end, deked two Norwegian players then found Phil Kessel in front with a beautiful backhand pass.

Midway through the third, Dubinsky scored his third of the game on a shot from the right faceoff circle that beat backup netminder Ruben Smith during a U.S. power play. Smith replaced Grotnes shortly after the eighth goal for the Americans.

Esche, making his second start in as many games for the Americans, stopped 17 shots. The Americans fired 48 pucks at the Norwegian net.

Switzerland pounds Denmark at World Hockey Championship

cp.org — Mon, 12 May 2008 03:03:00 -0400

QUEBEC - The Swiss are starting to look comfortable among the top eight in international hockey.

Once a B-pool regular, Switzerland displaced Germany in 2003 as the No. 8 team in the world behind the long-established Big-7 - Canada, Russia, the Czech Republic, the United States, Sweden, Finland and Slovakia, in no particular order.

And Slovakia's failure to get past the preliminary round at the IIHF World Hockey Championship this week will see the Swiss move at least a spot or two higher in the next world rankings of hockey-playing countries.

"To pass Slovakia is a monumental step," said Ralph Krueger, the Winnipeg native who has coached Switzerland since 1997. "It's something I thought I'd never see in my time as coach."

A 7-2 drubbing of lowly Denmark on Sunday guaranteed at least third place in their qualifying round group, thanks to an upset 4-2 victory over Sweden earlier in the tournament.

In other games Sunday, Latvia beat Norway 4-1, Finland beat the United States 3-2 in Halifax and Sweden downed the Czech Republic 5-3 in Quebec City.

Switzerland plays its last round robin game Monday against Russia.

The Swiss were coming off a deflating 5-0 loss to the Czechs and stormed out against Denmark, taking an early 2-0 lead then outshooting them 54-20 enroute to a lopsided win.

"We had a few days to regroup and I'm really pleased with how we started," said Krueger. "We're excited to be back in the quarter-finals.

"It's great for our program. It could have ruined the week if we had a bad game today."

Switzerland's rise as a hockey power has come through strong youth programs and a good national pro league.

Only one player on the world championship team, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., native Paul DiPietro, was developed outside the country, and the former NHL forward plays for Zug in the Swiss league and has had Swiss citizenship for several years.

What is surprising about this year's team is that they are winning without a handful of long-time national team stalwarts, including their only full-time NHL skater - Montreal Canadien Mark Streit.

Streit, who had 62 points playing forward and defence for Montreal, is out with a back injury.

"It was a huge challenge for us when Mark couldn't come," said Krueger. "He averaged 30 minutes of ice time.

"But we had young players step in. And we don't think about players who aren't here, only the players we have."

Krueger also initiated a youth movement, leaving veterans like former Edmonton Oiler Michel Riesen, ex-Chicago Blackhawk Reto Van Arx, Martin Pluss and Patrick Fischer off the team.

Changes were in order after the team barely managed to finish eighth at last year's world championship in Moscow.

As well as adding young players like defencemen Philippe Furrer and Raphael Diaz, Krueger also got his team out of its long-standing defensive shell and allowed his players to go on attack more.

"We play a very simple game," said Furrer. "We play as a team and we know we're strong when we do that and that we'll get our chances.

"Each guy does his job and we trust each other. And we've got good goaltending."

With Ottawa Senators starter Martin Gerber and Anaheim Ducks back-up Jonas Hiller, Switzerland doesn't even need former NHL goalie David Aebischer.

Long-time Swiss hockey writer Klaus Zaugg jokes that Krueger introduced "glasnost" by lightening the team's defensive-oriented hockey after the Moscow tournament.

"He had to do something because Switzerland will be host (of the world championships) next year and because of the poor performance in Moscow," said Zaugg. "I think last year was the most boring Swiss team ever."

This year's side looks a little bigger and lot more poised than past Swiss teams.

Their 2-0 victory over Canada's best at the 2006 Winter Olympics, which needed a 49-save effort from Gerber, remains the country's biggest win ever, but beating a top team is not quite as huge an upset as it once was.

They'll shoot for another against Alexander Ovechkin and the Russians, although with a quarter-final spot secured, Krueger said he will rest some players who are playing with minor injuries, who of course he didn't name.

"We respect teams, but we're a good team, too," added Furrer. "We're top-8.

"We want to beat the Russians. It doesn't matter if their players are from the NHL or from Norway or anywhere else, we just want to win the game."

Andres Ambuhl, Sandy Jeannin, Marc Reichert, Thierry Paterlini, Paul DiPietro, Philippe Furrer and Beat Forster scored for the Swiss against Denmark before an announced crowd of 8,338 at Pepsi Colisee.

With Switzerland leading 6-0 in the third period, Denmark scored twice. Morten Madsen scored on a shot that went in off Swiss defenceman Goran Bezina's leg and Kim Staal beat Gerber on a penalty shot.

Denmark plays Belarus on Monday looking for a win and a chance to finish 10th, which will allow them to play host next year to the qualifying tournament for the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

In Halifax, Mikko Koivu's goal with 3:50 left in regulation capped a wild comeback as Finland rallied for three third-period goals in a 3-2 win over the U.S.

The Americans took a two-goal lead to the third after scoring twice in the second. But in the final period it was all Finns, as they scored three times on 25 shots. With Finland enjoying a power play, Koivu took the puck from the end boards, came out front and stuffed the puck past American netminder Robert Esche.

In a night game before 7,864 in Quebec City, Patric Hornqvist broke a tie with 4:53 left to play to give Sweden the 5-3 victory over the Czechs.

After a scoreless first period, the Swedes took one-goal leads in the second period on tallies by Anton Stralman and Marcus Nilson only to see the Czechs tie it each time on power-play goals by Patrick Elias and Ales Kotalik.

Mattias Weinhandl gave Sweden another lead 1:14 into the third period, but Tomas Fleischman, playing on the top line after Patrick Elias suffered an unknown injury, got it back at 9:41 as he shated out from behind the net, spun and beat Henrik Lundqvist with a wrist shot.

But Hornqvist's fifth goal of the tournament on a rebound from the slot at 15:07 gave Sweden the decisive lead and Nilson got his second of the game into an empty net with 26 seconds left to play.

Czech coach Alois Hadamczik said Elias suffered a sore knee when he crashed into the net. He said the injury did not appear to be serious and he expects Elias to play in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.

The Swedes, who had Niclas Wallin back from a two-game suspension but were without suspended blue-liner Douglas Murray, killed a 1:06 two-man Czech advantage in the first period.

Jamal Mayers has pregnant wife in thoughts this Mother's Day as he chases world title

cp.org — Mon, 12 May 2008 01:46:00 -0400

HALIFAX - Under normal circumstances, Natalie Mayers would be at the IIHF World Hockey Championship watching her husband Jamal play for Team Canada.

Her Mother's Day would have included a brunch with all the other players' families and an afternoon tour.

Instead, she's eight months pregnant and back home in St. Louis looking after the couple's two-year-old daughter Langley. She's also on her husband's mind.

"She got flowers yesterday and I already called today," Jamal said after practice on Sunday morning. "It's another example of all the sacrifices that mom's make. Being a hockey wife isn't an easy job."

Mayers seriously considered taking a pass on the world championship with his wife due to give birth in June. He was part of the Canadian team that won gold in Russia last year and had Natalie join him in Moscow for the final few days of that event.

When he received another invitation from GM Steve Yzerman this year, the couple talked it over and decided that the opportunity was too good for him to pass up.

"I had some apprehension at first with my wife being eight months pregnant," said Mayers. "I knew she would be supportive regardless but I wanted to let her really think about it. ...

"We have a pretty good support system at home with her mom and family around so we're pretty lucky that way."

It's something all professional hockey players can relate to. Most of them owe some of their success to devoted parents who helped with their early development in the game and many continue to rely heavily on family to help keep things in order while they're away from home.

Hockey Canada understands that and runs an enviable family program during this event.

"You feel bad for the other countries because when they see what they do for us, they get jealous," said captain Shane Doan. "They talk about, 'Wow, look at what Hockey Canada does. Look at what the extent of what they go to.'

"Last night, it was as simple as making sure everyone has flowers. Making sure all the moms have flowers, all the wives have flowers. If you're here and you wanted flowers shipped back to your mom somewhere else, they'd ship them back for you."

It sounds like a small gesture but it's the kind of thing that helps the team succeed. Everything a player might need is taken care of so that he can focus on the task at hand.

The Canadian team has won all five of its games here and is entering an important stretch starting with Monday's game against Finland (TSN, 3:30 p.m. ET). The playoff round follows that.

"When you get in competitions that are this long, a lot of times the teams that win are the ones that just don't want to go home," said Canadian coach Ken Hitchcock. "They want to keep going, they want to stay together. Our team has that feel about it right now.

"They enjoy each other's company, they're having a great time together."

That's another thing the families help with.

Cam Ward brought childhood friend Steve Kelly to Moscow a year ago and has his parents and wife with him here. One of the turning points for the 2007 team was when all the guests arrived.

"It seemed like when the parents came and the family came, the team brought it to another level," said Ward.

In many ways, these trips can be a once in a lifetime experience for everyone involved.

"Going to Moscow (last year) didn't really sound like a great family trip and my kids had a blast," said Doan. "They got to go to the Kremlin, Red Square and do all that. Here we've been down to the ocean and walked at the harbourfront, Peggy's Cove.

"They're doing all these fun things."

That helps builds continuity in the program.

It was less than 10 years ago that Hockey Canada practically had to beg players to come to the world championship. Now it's finding that players are being urged to come by family members who want to join them at the tournament.

"I think if it was just work and if it was just a job and just business, I don't think you'd get the players coming back," said Hitchcock. "I think if you don't include the families you (won't) have any hope of bringing the players back again."

Rick Nash's grandpa has become a mainstay at international tournaments. The 23-year-old forward is playing in his third world championship and was also a member of the 2006 Olympic team and the 2002 world junior squad. He always brings his grandpa along for the ride.

His mother Liz was also in Moscow a year ago but couldn't make it this spring. She celebrated a birthday on Saturday and Mother's Day on Sunday and will excuse her son for his absence from those events if he can bring home another gold medal.

"That would be more than enough for sure," said Nash.

Mayers can relate.

The best part about winning gold in Russia wasn't hearing the national anthem after the game or spraying his teammates with champagne in the dressing room - it was having his wife Natalie there to witness it.

"It only means something when you have someone to share it with," said Mayers. "Family's the most important thing."

In Sunday's on-ice action, Switzerland routed Denmark 7-2, Latvia beat Norway 4-1, Finland beat the United States 3-2 and Sweden defeated the Czech Republic 5-3.

Finland rallies to beat U.S. at worlds

cp.org — Sun, 11 May 2008 23:02:00 -0400

HALIFAX - The United States lost its lead Sunday - and then, it lost its cool.

Mikko Koivu's goal with 3:50 left in regulation capped a wild comeback as Finland rallied for three third-period goals in a 3-2 win over the U.S. at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.

After the goal, American forward Adam Burish was tossed for a butt-ending a Finland player. Then, just as the final horn sounded to end the game, American forward Dustin Brown drilled a Finnish defenceman into the boards with a hit to the head. The play led to a post-game melee, and featured a fight between David Backes of the U.S. and Finland's Amsso Salmela.

With the loss, the Americans (2-2) can now finish no better than third in its preliminary pool. The U.S. has already qualified for a spot in Wednesday's quarter-final.

Finland (4-0) moved to within a point of the idle Canadians atop the Group F standings. The teams face off Monday in the qualifying round finale for both teams.

Tom Gilbert opened the scoring for the Americans 90 seconds into the second period. The Edmonton Oilers defenceman skated in from the blue-line and scored on a loose puck from just outside of the Finland goal crease.

Gilbert's first goal of the tournament came one second after Olli Jokinen's five-minute checking-from-behind penalty had ended. Jokinen, the captain of the Florida Panthers, drilled American blue-liner Tim Gleason into the boards from behind to earn the match penalty.

Both teams had numerous chances to score with the man-advantage after Gilbert's marker, but the score held until the 19:15 mark. American forward Phil Kessel drilled a shot far corner from the right faceoff circle that cleanly beat Finland netminder Nicklas Backstrom during a U.S. power play.

Just seconds before Kessel's goal, netminder Esche made an incredible glove stop on Koivu. On a short-handed breakout for Finland, Saku Koivu fed the puck up to his younger brother Mikko, who deked right but had his back-hand attempt go into Esche's outstretched glove.

Two minutes into the third, Ville Koistinen scored on a one-timer during a two-man advantage to get Finland on the board. The Americans disputed the goal, claiming the puck went through the mesh on the side of the net. The play was reviewed and the goal was allowed.

A minute later, and with Finland still on the power play, Esche made another highlight save, as he stuck out the glove while laying on his chest to deny Finland's Janne Niskala of a sure goal.

Midway through the third, Finland scored the tying goal as Saku Koivu made a nice cross-ice pass to Teemu Selanne, who made no mistake from the side of the net.

Canadian coaches bring grit, work ethic to foreign hockey programs

cp.org — Sun, 11 May 2008 17:36:00 -0400

QUEBEC - Canadian coaches are becoming a hot commodity on the international hockey scene.

At the IIHF World Hockey Championship, six of the 16 coaches are Canadian in addition to Team Canada's Ken Hitchcock.

Belarus, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, and Switzerland all have opted for a little Canadian influence at the helm.

Other countries employ Canadian assistants as fledgling hockey nations try to add some Canadian flavour and toughness to their own game.

"It's a great experience, coaching in Denmark, and maybe we might be able to add some things from the Canadian game that could help Denmark get to the next step," says Denmark head coach Mike Sirant, a Winnipeg native who spent 13-years as head coach at the University of Manitoba before taking over Denmark's hockey program.

"I recognized that Denmark is a fast-developing hockey country and to play some small role in helping continue their development was a challenge and an honour," said Sirant, who now lives in Denmark full-time.

Coaches have found different routes to their international jobs. France's Dave Henderson, for example, was born and raised in Montreal before moving to France nearly 33 years ago to play professionally and ended up working his way through the ranks.

It's a similar story for Ralph Krueger, a Winnipeg native who played in Europe before turning to coaching. He has run the Swiss national team since 1998.

Others, like Finland head coach and Wallaceburg, Ont. native Doug Shedden was recruited by Finnish general manager Jari Kurri to teach his team how to win.

But while Shedden's bosses expect a medal at his final tournament at Finland's helm, the goals for the others are to continue providing the building blocks for the long-term development of the hockey programs in their respective countries.

"I worked 27 years coaching hockey at the University of Ottawa, and now I'm teaching the Italians to embrace the Canadian style of hockey," says Michel (Mickey) Goulet, head coach of Italy and a native of Ottawa.

"In Italy, to improve the level of hockey, we have to improve coaching and get more kids to play hockey. That's the only way forward for Italy, because we don't have the money nor do we want to bring in "italos" like Roberto Luongo, like Italy did in the past, with for example, goalkeeper Jim Corsi," Goulet said.

Incidentally, it was Corsi, an Italian coach and fellow Canadian, who brought him to Italy.

Not to say that Goulet thinks the Canadian content needs to be weeded out of the Italian system. But he figures it takes a few decades to produce a homegrown world championship calibre player.

"I think you have to have a balance," Goulet says.

"You want the good ones that will play for Italy and the name on the front of their jersey, not the name on the back - it's the only we can have success."

It is a similar mantra in Denmark, which is beginning to export some of its homegrown talent to play in North America.

"You look at Denmark and for a country with only 19 ice rinks, I think all of Denmark can be proud of the effort of our team," said Sirant, who says he's learning valuable lessons from Dane coaches and players also.

"We do have a lot of young guys on our team and the future looks good for us."

In the case of former Washington Capitals coach Glen Hanlon, it was the Belarusian embassy in Washington D.C. that came knocking during the NHL lockout.

"The president of the hockey federation really liked Hockey Canada and they just wanted to change their direction and wanted a North American style coach," said Hanlon, born in Brandon, Man., and serving as an assistant coach at the world championships under Canadian-American head coach Curt Fraser.

Hanlon oversaw the young Belarus team in a number of tournaments and saw an amazing turnaround in that country before handing over the reins to Fraser, a friend who'd been cut loose by the Atlanta Thrashers.

Hanlon hopes to one day return to the NHL coaching ranks.

But the former NHL goaltender is happy to be replacing Shedden behind the bench for Jokerit, a Finnish hockey club, and credits Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson for developing the coaching program that has made Canadians so respected on an international level.

"The biggest thing Canada has going for it is Bob Nicholson and what he's done with the Canadian programs that are so well organized and so well run that it's paved the way for us to go abroad and its given us credibility as coaches," Hanlon said.

Certainly, many countries look to Canada for a blueprint for hockey success.

Goulet says when he arrived in Italy, the initial game plan had always been to look good on the ice. Not good enough, says Goulet, who has added a Canadian competitive spirit to the Italian squad.

"I just wanted to see if we could change the attitude," says Goulet, adding that he thinks he's succeeded in teaching his players to love the game.

"Hockey is not a 9-to-5 job, it is a 365-day-a-year job ... a passion ... it's a way of life."

Eric Staal comes alive as Canada crushes Germany

cp.org — Sun, 11 May 2008 04:16:00 -0400

HALIFAX - When the puck finally started going in for Eric Staal, it simply didn't stop.

The big centre broke out in a big way Saturday by scoring his first four goals of the IIHF World Hockey Championship. Staal also added an assist as Canada routed the helpless Germans 10-1.

"We were just trying to get Staal as many goals as possible," said linemate Derek Roy. "We said he was on pace for six. We were just trying to feed him in the third period, he had the hot stick going.

"He's a great player."

That greatness hadn't been realized early in this tournament as Staal managed just two assists in the first four games and didn't seem to have his usual deft touch around the net.

Part of that can be chalked up to the fact that he was sometimes being used in an unfamiliar position on the wing but coach Ken Hitchcock thinks there was more to it than that.

"I feel like Eric was carrying too much stress with him," said Hitchcock. "He just needed to continue to work and play. He did that today and he had a lot of success.

"I think sometimes the burden of expectations, when you carry it and you don't carry it the right way, it can really be heavy."

The weight was certainly lifted Saturday.

Staal is the first Canadian player to score at least four goals in a world championship game in 15 years. Eric Lindros had five against Italy in 1993 and no one else has more than three in the time since.

The 23-year-old Staal is playing in his second straight world championship and was able to remain patient when it started slowly.

"Obviously you want to help out as much as you can," said Staal. "I felt like I was working hard and getting to those areas but just not getting enough wood on it.

"It was just a matter of time."

Jason Spezza, Dany Heatley, Patrick Sharp, Mike Green, Jamal Mayers and Roy also scored for Canada while Martin St. Louis picked up five assists.

Frank Hordler spoiled Cam Ward's shutout bid by scoring for Germany midway through the third period.

This game could have used a mercy rule. At the end of the second period, the Canadians had almost as many goals (nine) as the Germans had shots (10).

"Our team was outmatched in just about every aspect of the game," said German coach Uwe Krupp. "I think it was a sobering experience for everybody. Thank god you don't have too many days like this."

Added captain Marco Sturm: "They're just too big, too strong, too good in all areas."

The German team has been surrounded by scandal during this event and simply didn't have any life against the Canadians, who skated as well as they have all tournament.

Canada has a 5-0 record here but it's hard to gauge exactly where the team is at because it's yet to face one of the other big powers. Monday's game against Finland could be an important one as it will likely dictate who will play Norway in the quarter-finals.

"Today was hopefully the start of putting together the total package," said Hitchcock. "We're going to need it."

In other matches, the Czech Republic edged Belarus 3-2 and Russia nipped Sweden 3-2 on a late goal from Alex Ovechkin. In relegation play, Slovakia beat Slovenia 4-3 and France won a high scoring game 6-4 over Italy.

Staal is one of the Canadian forwards who will be needed to provide secondary scoring in the big games.

He and St. Louis became the sixth and seventh Canadian players in the modern era to record five points in a game at this event. Lindros holds the record with six - a feat he accomplished twice back in 1993.

"You got to have your players play their best," said St. Louis. "If we can get all our guys with confidence and feeling good about themselves, I like our chances."

Perhaps the most notable thing about the victory over Germany is that Canada didn't need much from the top line to get it. Heatley, Rick Nash and Ryan Getzlaf had carried this team early but only combined for a single point on Saturday.

This one got ugly in a hurry.

Spezza opened the scoring at 5:14 of the first period when he skated in off the wing and outwaited Dimitrij Kotschnew before sliding the puck between the German goalie's legs. He was dropped to the fourth line early in the event after struggling to find his rhythm and celebrated his first goal here by pumping his fist enthusiastically.

A familiar figure extended the lead to 2-0. Heatley scored his tournament-leading seventh goal after beating a defender and knocking his own rebound by Kotschnew at 13:35.

Staal's first of the night came 30 seconds later and Sharp made it 4-0 with 22.9 seconds left in the first period when his centring pass went in off a skate.

"After a few, they looked like it was tough to come back for them," said Staal.

Krupp sent in goalie Robert Mueller to start the second period but there was nothing he could do to stop the onslaught. Staal scored two goals in the first 8:20 of the second period to complete the hat trick before getting a fourth at 15:30.

Roy and Mayers also had goals in the frame to make it 9-0 after 40 minutes, prompting some of the 9,182 fans at the Metro Centre to head for their cars early.

Green scored a power-play goal at 1:47 of the third period to go along with two assists.

Hordler was the last German to touch the puck before Canadian defenceman Dan Hamhuis inadvertently knocked it into his own goal at 8:40. It was the only piece of good fortune for the German team, which was officially eliminated from quarter-final contention.

The mood around the team has been especially good for the past couple days and Hitchcock sensed a game like this was coming.

"Everything we shot went in the net," he said. "We played a very powerful game today. We had a lot of people on top of it."

Vrbata, Kotalik score in shootout as Czechs edge Belarus 3-2

cp.org — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:28:00 -0400

QUEBEC - Radim Vrbata and Ales Kotalik scored in shootout as the Czech Republic survived a scare from plucky Belarus to post a 3-2 victory on Saturday at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.

Only Dmitri Meleshko was able to score in the shootout for Belarus, which was coming off a 4-3 shootout loss to Russia on Friday. Tomas Rolinek and Ales Kotalik scored in regulation time for the Czechs, who outshot Belrus 43-18, while Yaroslav Chupris and Andrei Kostisyn scored for Belarus.

Later Saturday at the Colisee Russia takes on Sweden.

Belarus didn't get a shot until the 10:00 mark of the opening period against thorough Czech checking, but got some late pressure and turned it into a goal as Milan Hnilicka lelt a big rebound on Meleshko's shot. Two Belarus players fanned on it, but Chupris trailed in to slap it in at the 18:12 mark.

The Czech tied it at 16:53 of the middle period on a disputed goal as Zbynek Irgl's shot was pushed into the net by Rolinek's left skate. Video review upheld the goal, even though Rolinek appeared to reach with his skate to make sure the puck went in. Officials ruled that Rolinek's momentum carried the puck into the net.

But Belarus got a break 9:50 into the third period as a clearing attempt went off the skate of a Czech player heading to the bench and stayed in the zone, so Kostisyn could blast a shot from the high slot that went through Hnilicka's legs.

Kotalik tied it at 13:38 and he converted a feed from the corner by Tomas Plekanec.

Russia holds off Belarus in shootout at IIHF World Hockey Championship

cp.org — Sat, 10 May 2008 02:18:00 -0400

QUEBEC - Vitali Koval is an unknown no more at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.

The Belarusian netminder shed the "little-known" tag with a 52-save performance in which he nearly carried his upstart Belarus team to victory over a heavily favoured Russian squad before narrowly losing 4-3 in a shootout on Friday.

Koval, a 28-year-old who plays in Belarus and is at his first international tournament against this calibre of opponent, says perhaps he has something more up his sleeve.

"Maybe you'll see something even better than that," Koval said following the hard-fought contest. "I'll try my best."

With Belarus needing to win its next two games in the qualifying round, Koval's performance has given a boost to his teammates.

"I haven't seen him play before this tournament and I'm very pleased with his game," said Belarus team captain Ruslan Salei. "He gives us a chance in every game and that's what you want from your goalie."

Alexei Morozov beat Koval with a backhander for the shootout winner.

Fans at Le Pepsi Colisee took notice of the Belarusian goaltender's superb performance and chanted his name when he was passed up for player of the game.

"It's not the best game of my life," Koval said through a translator."We lost the game and that's why this isn't the best game of my life."

Andrei Mikhalev, Dimitry Dudik and Alexei Ugarov scored for Belarus in regulation. Ugarov had a chance to keep the shootout going in the third round but didn't score.

Maxim Afinogenov of the Buffalo Sabres scored two goals and Washington Capitals star Alexander Ovechkin added another for Russia, which remain undefeated at the tournament.

Elsewhere in the tournament it was: Finland 2, Latvia 1; Slovakia 5, Slovenia 1; and France 3, Italy 2.

Belarus held the lead until 7:21 of the third period when Ovechkin finally tied the game at 2-2 with a snapshot against Koval, who'd frustrated Ovechkin on a handful of occasions in the second period.

Afinogenov gave the Russians a brief lead at 13:51 of the third period but Ugarov tied the game 3-3 on a beautiful feed from Montreal Canadiens centre Mikhail Grabovski at 16:12.

Despite a number of chances, neither team was able to score in a wide-open overtime that included a Russian power play.

"We expected a tough game and it's always a tight game between these guys," Afinogenov said.

"(Koval) had almost 50 saves, that's a pretty good goalie. He saved the game for them."

Koval says he has been gaining confidence after letting in five goals against Sweden in the tournament opener.

"Confidence comes with time," Koval said.

"I lack the experience of participating in such top events and playing against such opponents on that level of game."

Belarus managed just five shots on goal in the first period but made them count, scoring at 7:27 of the first when Mikhalev converted a pass from Grabovski past goaltender Mikhail Biryukov.

Belarus capitalized on a sloppy play by Washington Capitals centre Sergei Fedorov to add to their lead.

Fedorov lazily dropped a pass behind him with Dudik hot on the forecheck. Dudik picked off the puck and fired it past a stunned Biryukov, who turned aside 20 saves through regulation. Biryukov got the start despite the arrival of San Jose Sharks star Evgeni Nabokov, who was dressed for the Russians.

The Russians finally got on the board at 3:54 of the second period when Afinogenov, standing in front of the net, knocked in a rebound of a Vitali Proshkin point shot.

The Russians had plenty of chances in the first two periods, when they fired 36 shots on Koval. He stoned Ovechkin on a breakaway early in the second, and made a brilliant save on a one-timer from the sniper later in the period.

"They have the top players in the world and it's not that easy to stop them but we managed to do that for most of the game," said Salei, who battled with Ovechkin much of the contest.

"It didn't happen today, but I think we have a pretty good future."

Although he didn't grab himself the game puck or any other memento, playing against Russia' explosive offence was something that Koval will always cherish.

And after stoning the NHL's leading scorer in Ovechkin on a number of occasions, could another trip to North America be in the cards for the goaltender?

"I don't know what the future holds," Koval said.

"But I think every player has a dream to play in the NHL."

NOTES: Atlanta Thrashers sniper Ilya Kovalchuk, who is among the Russian leaders in points, has failed to score a goal thus far in the tournament and missed a number of chances Friday . . . defencemen Andrei Markov of the Montreal Canadiens and Fedor Tyutin of the New York Rangers made their debuts for the Russians.

Finland 2, Latvia 1

At Halifax, a spectacular 62-save effort by Latvian goalie Edgar Masalskis wasn't enough as Niko Kapanen scored late in the third for the win.

Slovakia 5, Slovenia 1

At Halifax, Marcel Hossa had a goal and two assists as Slovakia rolled over Slovenia in IIHF action.

France 3, Italy 2

At Quebec, Armin Helfer's late third period goal wasn't enough as Cristobal Huet stopped Italy's comeback bid with 40 saves.

Dany Heatley could be playing internationally for Germany instead of Canada

cp.org — Sat, 10 May 2008 02:00:00 -0400

HALIFAX - The year was 1999 and Dany Heatley had a decision to make.

He wasn't invited to the evaluation camp for Canada's world junior team when the German federation called and tried to convince him to join their program instead.

"We asked the question years ago when Dany wasn't at the U-20," German GM Franz Reindl said Friday. "He was not selected. We talked. We tried. We negotiated.

"He was 18 years old and was not the biggest thing. Of course we tried."

Heatley ended up holding on to his Canadian eligibility and has been more than rewarded for that decision. He wore the Maple Leaf at the the next two world junior tournaments, the 2006 Olympics and is currently playing in his fifth IIHF World Hockey Championship.

It's interesting to consider how differently things might have turned out. Heatley was born in the German town of Freiburg while his father Murray was playing pro hockey there and holds a passport from that country.

Had he made a different choice almost a decade ago, Heatley could easily be playing for the other side when Canada faces Germany on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET).

"My dad played over there a lot of years and my mom's from there," said Heatley. "I have some family I'm sure that will be watching the game.

"It's always fun definitely to play that team."

The German connections continue for the family. Heatley's younger brother Mark will play for a second division team in Munich next season after spending two years at the University of Toronto.

Murray Heatley arrived in Halifax on Friday along with roughly 60 other family members of the Canadian team. They'll all be at the Metro Centre on Saturday afternoon, when Murray will have a chance to chat with his former teammate Reindl.

They played together with Riessersee for three seasons and won the German League title in 1978.

"Murray Heatley was a hot shark," said Reindl. "He was really dangerous. He scored like hell."

He didn't quite have the size of his famous six-foot-three son and never made it to the NHL.

Dany Heatley hasn't see any old footage from his dad's playing days but is still able to offer a scouting report.

"I play with him oldtimers in the summer so I get a feel for his game from that," he said. "He's still good. He can still score goals."

Like father, like son.

In Friday's games, Finland beat Latvia 2-1, Russia edged Belarus 4-3 in a shootout, Slovakia hammered Slovenia 5-1 and France won 3-2 over Italy.

Heatley leads the tournament with six goals and 10 points in four games. He found instant chemistry on the top line with Rick Nash and Ryan Getzlaf - three big guys that Canadian head coach Ken Hitchcock believes are pretty much unstoppable together.

"They're not going to have success like they're having every night," said Hitchcock. "It's impossible. ...

"But you're not going to shut it down totally. They're competitive. They're not going to get discouraged because somebody's playing them hard."

Nash was responsible for yet another good YouTube clip during Thursday's 2-1 win over Norway, when he skated the length of the ice before scoring the winning goal late in the game. Hitchcock also coaches Nash in Columbus and says he saw seven goals as good as that one from him this season.

The 23-year-old winger missed most of Canada's training camp after having minor throat surgery after the NHL season and appears to be picking up steam after taking some time to recover.

"I knew I had to use the first round as kind of my own training camp and getting ready," said Nash. "Each game I'm starting to feel better and my legs are starting to come back."

Everything seems pretty quiet around the unbeaten Canadian team as there have been no major setbacks or controversies during the first four tournament games.

Their next opponent wishes it could say the same thing.

Germany has already had one player (Jason Holland) kicked out of the tournament and another (Florian Busch) become the subject of a doping scandal.

"To say the least, this hasn't been a quiet world championship for us," said German coach Uwe Krupp. "We've had quite a bit of drama and turmoil."

He added to it on Thursday night by telling the media that some of the team's unsupportive fans should leave Halifax immediately on one of the three flights back to Germany. Krupp was upset that a few Germans in the stands for a game against the U.S. held up signs calling for the firing of Reindl.

The fans were angry after the Canadian-born Holland was ruled ineligible two games into the event because he had only spent three years playing in Germany instead of the necessary four. Essentially, the German federation made a clerical error when it added him to the team and Reindl took full responsibility for it.

Fan protests aside, everyone involved with the German team has been supportive.

"They really backed me up," said Reindl. "It's a great feeling getting so much support."

The country only boasts a handful of NHLers so it always needs more support on the ice. That's why the federation tries to lure any good players with German ties to the national team.

That could have been Dany Heatley.

German goalie survives brain tumour and plays at world championship

cp.org — Fri, 09 May 2008 22:10:00 -0400

HALIFAX - During the weeks Robert Mueller laid in a hospital bed, he thought about little other than hockey.

He had undergone surgery to remove a malignant brain tumour in November 2006 and was already planning his comeback. Many people were concerned that the German League goaltender might not survive while he was worrying about making his next start.

"No, not one second did I think (I wouldn't be back)," said Mueller. "I love this game and it was for sure a big support for me to have thoughts of playing hockey again. That's why I wasn't nervous or had fear at all."

A year and a half later, the 27-year-old is a member of the German team at the IIHF World Hockey Championship. He's the No. 2 man behind Dmitri Patzold but was in net for the team's lone victory so far - a 4-2 upset of Slovakia earlier this week.

His presence has been uplifting for the teammates that were with him when the tumour was diagnosed during a national team function. He was suffering from serious neck pain and going through dizzy spells at that time.

"He basically had a death sentence put on him," said German coach Uwe Krupp. "We're like a family and it's tough when you see someone close to you go through that. That was a tough blow for everybody.

"It was even more of a boost when he came back."

He's become something of a celebrity back home in Germany, which is a notable accomplishment for a hockey player in the soccer-mad country.

The stocky redhead even made an appearance in Playboy - although he points out that the only thing he took off was his hockey jersey.

"It's a big honour," said Mueller. "Not too many German hockey players were in Playboy before. It was a funny story."

Mueller was born in Rosenheim and was introduced to hockey by his brother around the age of five. He was "addicted right away."

He was both a forward and goalie until the age of 18, when he devoted himself to goal full-time and started making appearances for the national team.

His entire professional career has been with teams in the German League, save for an eight-game stretch in Switzerland. He's not holding out any hope of making his way to North America.

"When I was younger, I should maybe have tried harder," said Mueller. "Now I think there's not too many chances. Sometimes I heard one is going to happen so you never know."

The health problems put a lot of things into perspective for the married father of two.

He had trouble with his coach in Mannheim at the start of this season and found himself relegated to the backup position. Instead of sulking, he signed with lowly Duisburg.

"Money is not everything in life so I went to the last-place team to get some games," said Mueller.

He was impressive there and eventually signed with the Cologne Sharks, who he helped lead past Mannheim in the first round of the playoffs. They were beaten in the league final.

Cologne has since extended his contract.

"I know I can't be a backup goalie," said Mueller. "I want to be a No. 1 goalie and I'm 27 years old. It's time."

Overall, he's almost nonchalant about all that has happened over the past 18 months. A scar across his scalp provides a reminder of the surgical procedure but he doesn't even know how long the incision is.

"The guys always ask me how long the surgery was and everything but I don't care," said Mueller. "I'm just happy that everything went well for me."

He's always happy when hockey is involved.

"It was a big motivation for me to get back here," said Mueller. "I've played this game since I was five years old and it's the only thing I have besides my family."

Added Krupp: "It's an unbelievable story really."

Parise's go-ahead goal gives U.S. 6-4 victory over Germany

cp.org — Fri, 09 May 2008 04:08:00 -0400

HALIFAX - The United States needed every bit of its quick start to survive a scare from an opportunistic German team.

Zach Parise's power play goal with 8:56 remaining in the third period was the winner as the Americans held on for a 6-4 qualifying round victory over Germany at the IIHF world hockey championship Thursday.

The U.S appeared to have the game in hand when they scored three times in the opening 2:52 of the first period, but Germany refused to go away, gradually chipping away at the American lead.

Germany tied things at 4-4 early in the third, forcing Parise to come through on the power play. The New Jersey Devils sniper took the puck at the side of the goal and roofed it over Germany netminder Dimitrij Patzold.

The Americans iced the victory when Dustin Brown scored into an empty net with 1:36 remaining.

"We kind of let them hang around. We let them off the hook a little bit," said Parise, who finished with two goals and an assist. "But I don't think it's much of a concern. (Germany) played hard.

"If anything, we learned we have to play a 60-minute game. The teams in this tournament are too good to let them off like that."

The Americans, two days removed from a tough 5-4 setback against Canada, dominated much of the play against Germany, which a day earlier suffered a disappointing loss to Norway.

Final shots favoured the Americans 42-15, but Germany capitalized on its few chances and seemed like it might skate away with the improbable win.

In other action it was: Canada 2, Norway 1; Czech Republic 5, Switzerland 0; and Sweden 8, Denmark 1.

The Americans refused to let that happen. They controlled the final 10 minutes of regulation, showing character despite the team's youth.

"It's nice to see we can win this type of game," said Parise, one the stars on an American club made up mostly of players aged 25-and-under. "When we need to score some goals, we can."

The game began with a bang, as the Americans scored three times on four shots.

Parise opened the scoring just 26 seconds in as he fired a bullet shot from the slot that beat Patzold to the blocker side.

Patrick O'Sullivan made it 2-0 at 2:10 of the first on a shot from in close, and James Wisniewski scored again for the U.S. just 42 seconds later when he pinched in from the blue-line and beat Patzold with a quick release.

Germany, looking totally outmatched against the Americans, finally found life at 14:03 of the first when Michael Hackert bounced a wrap-around attempt off a sliding O'Sullivan and in behind American goaltender Craig Anderson.

Three minutes later, Germany scored again as Christopher Schmidt pinched in from the point during a power play and one-timed a shot underneath Anderson, who faced only four shots in the period.

In the second, the U.S. took a 4-2 lead when Jason Pominville banked the puck in off Patzold during a five-on-three U.S. power play. But Germany cut the deficit to one five minutes later as Florian Busch scored his second of the tournament on a goal-mouth scramble.

In the third, Germany tied things up at 4:55 as Michael Bakos let a shot go from the point that went through a crowd and past Anderson. After the goal, Anderson was pulled for back-up Robert Esche. Anderson allowed four goals on 10 shots. Esche faced only five shots in relief duty.

"Give them credit. Germany played a good game," said U.S. blue-liner Paul Martin, who assisted on both of Parise's goals. "But we didn't give them a lot chances. They just did a good job capitalizing on their opportunities."

The U.S. now has two days off before returning to action Sunday afternoon to face unbeaten Finland. The Americans close out the qualifying round Monday against Norway.

The Americans are in second place in their six-team qualifying pool, and with a win in its final two games, clinches a spot in Wednesday's quarter-finals.

"The Finns are going to be a challenge," Martin said. "We have to now put this win behind us and focus on them."

Canada 2, Norway 1

At Halifax, Steve Nash scored late in the third period as Canada edged a surprising Norway squad to remain undefeated at the championship.

Czech Republic 5, Switzerland 0

At Quebec, the talented Czech offence was too much for the Swiss squad, putting an end to their undefeated streak with a strong performance.

Sweden 8, Denmark 1

At Quebec, Henrik Lundqvist was solid in his first game of the tournament as Sweden bounced back from a disappointing loss to hammer Denmark.

Nash scores late winner as Canada edges upstart Norway

cp.org — Fri, 09 May 2008 03:01:00 -0400

HALIFAX - Any team looking to beat Canada at the IIHF World Hockey Championship should study tape of this game.

Norway entered as a heavy underdog against the unbeaten hosts but found itself with a chance for an upset after clogging the neutral zone and playing a tight-checking game. It wasn't pretty but it kept the Canadians at bay until Rick Nash made an incredible solo effort late to pull out the win.

You could almost hear the collective exhale from an edgy Metro Centre crowd after Nash beat a defender and slid the winning goal around Norway's Pal Grotnes with 3:58 to play.

"We knew what we were in for," Nash said after the 2-1 win on Thursday. "We didn't expect it to be that close but I think it's a good team-building game for us."

Norway was already already the surprise team of the tournament after earning a point for an overtime loss to Finland and pulling off an upset win over Germany. A victory over Canada would almost have been too good to be true for the small Scandinavian country.

The Norwegians were only 16 hours removed from their emotional win over Germany when the puck dropped in this one.

"We had a hard time getting any sleep," said forward Mads Hansen.

They still believed they had a chance.

The Norwegians have former NHL coach George Kingston working as an assistant, and he helped prepare the players for what to expect.

"We can't outplay Team Canada," said Hansen. "We've got to destroy them. We've got to be on them all the time and then we've got to hope for a break."

They got it in the second period when Canadian defenceman Duncan Keith turned the puck over at the Norwegian blue-line, and Hansen came in on a short-handed breakaway and beat Pascal Leclaire with a lovely deke move.

That made it 1-1 with just over 26 minutes to play and sent a surge through the Norwegian bench. Suddenly, they were thinking about an upset.

It's a script that Canadians have seen before with their team at the world championship. Norway and Germany both held Canada's gold medal-winning team to close games early at last year's tournament in Moscow.

"We've been in this exact same situation," said captain Shane Doan. "As a country it seems that we have another level of emotions that you can go to and you have to go to it.

"Unfortunately we allowed those teams to play with us in these games. We've got to find a way to get it going."

In other results, the Czech Republic blanked Switzerland 5-0, the United States beat Germany 6-4 and Sweden hammered Denmark 8-1.

Mike Green had the only other goal for a Canadian team that seemed a bit out of sync against Norway even though it put 52 shots on goal. They didn't create enough traffic in front of Grotnes - especially on the power play - and had some trouble making crisp tape-to-tape passes at times.

As the game wore on with the score still tied, the chances of a losing increased.

"I think there's always reason for concern in our game," said Canadian coach Ken Hitchcock. "The goalie is the difference-maker in our sport. He can win games, he can steal games.

"There's no guarantees because of the goaltender."

The goalie in this case is a part-time carpenter. Grotnes needs to keep a day job because he doesn't earn enough money playing for the Halden Comet back in Norway.

He wasn't really forced to make any spectacular saves but was solid throughout. Hitchcock sensed that his players began to "panic" a little as they saw him stop shot after shot.

Nash released that tension with yet another highlight-reel goal. Afterwards, he was looking forward to some sleep as he, Hitchcock, Leclaire and Jason Chimera had all travelled to Columbus on Wednesday for the funeral of Blue Jackets owner John H. McConnell.

"It's been a long 24 hours," said Nash.

It would have been even longer had they lost.

Norway has only ever beaten Canada once in 16 tries at this event and the setting was quite different in St. Petersburg, Russia, when they pulled off the 4-3 upset eight years ago.

"We were hoping again but it didn't work out," said captain Tommy Jakobsen.

The game was tied 1-1 heading into the third period and Canada got a 5-on-3 power play for nearly a minute early on. Hitchcock put out five players who had combined for 146 goals in the NHL this season but they couldn't produce one during the two-man advantage.

Frustration set in soon after and the Canadians took six straight penalties, including a double minor for high-sticking to defenceman Dan Hamhuis.

They managed to kill all those before Nash got the winner.

"We kind of waited a little bit long to pick up our game and find a way," said Green. "We needed to find a way a little bit earlier."

Czech Republic scorers solve undefeated Switzerland in 5-0 shutout win

cp.org — Fri, 09 May 2008 01:39:00 -0400

QUEBEC CITY, Que. - The Czech Republic put an end to Switzerland's undefeated streak at the IIHF World Hockey Championship with a 5-0 win Thursday night at Le Pepsi Colisee.

The Swiss, employing the same strong forecheck and neutral-zone trap that had kept them undefeated through the preliminary round, had no answers for a talented group of Czech forwards that skated and pressed all night.

Martin Erat, Tomas Kaberle, Patrik Elias, Tomas Fleischmann and Jiri Novotny scored for the Czech Republic while Erat, Kaberle, Elias each added an assist.

It was the Nashville Predators' Erat that put the Czech Republic up 1-0 on a beautiful breakaway goal at 19:06 of the first period, capitalizing on a neutral zone turnover by Swiss defenceman Goran Bezina.

Erat was sent in all alone by Tomas Rolinek and went upstairs on Swiss goaltender Martin Gerber in what would prove to be the game-winning goal.

The Swiss had the Czech Republic playing the game at their pace through much of the first, employing a smart, tight-checking approach that slowed down the pace and prevented the more skilled Czech forwards from opening up the game.

But the tactic that had been so successful in wins over Sweden, Belarus and France didn't work as the Swiss didn't ever have an all important lead to work with.

And in the second period, the stronger Czech offence began to take control and pepper Gerber with chances while outshooting the Swiss 10-2.

The Czech's persistent attack also created some Swiss penalties and while on the power play, Kaberle scored his first goal of the championship, wiring a slapshot from the top of the circle on a feed from Elias down low.

Kaberle, the Toronto Maple Leafs defender and Czech captain, has arguably been the best defenceman so far in Quebec City.

While on the power play again, the New Jersey Devils' Elias would then walk in on Gerber from the right face-off circle and go blocker side with a wrist shot on the Ottawa Senators' goaltender to put the Czech's up by three goals at 15:50 of the second period.

And in a sign that things just weren't going to well for the Swiss on this night, Tomas Fleischmann rushed in on Gerber wrapped up by a Swiss player and flipped the puck innocently towards the net with 27 seconds left in the period.

Swiss defenceman Julian Vauclair caught the puck and gloved it into his goal by mistake to put the Swiss down and out.

Jiri Novotny added a goal late in the third period.

Gerber was back in goal for the Swiss after a strong performance from Jonas Hiller on Wednesday's win over Sweden.

Gerber, who came into the game having surrendered only two goals in his two previous tournament starts, made 28 saves.

Czech netminder Milan Hnilicka was largely untested and stopped all 12 shots he faced, with just five in the final two frames.

Notes: An already strong Czech defence corps added Michal Rozsival of the New York Rangers for Thursday's game. Centre Tomas Plekanec played in his first game since joining the Czech team on Wednesday. . . . Gerber and Hiller are the only NHLers on the roster with Montreal Canadiens' defenceman Mark Streit unavailable due to a back injury.

Lundqvist solid as Sweden skates to 8-1 win over Denmark

cp.org — Fri, 09 May 2008 01:38:00 -0400

QUEBEC - Henrik Lundqvist was solid in his first game of the tournament and Sweden bounced back from a disappointing loss to hammer Denmark 8-1 Thursday afternoon.

The Swedes had been the subject of criticism in the Swedish press after their 4-2 loss to Switzerland on Wednesday in their final round-robin game.

They came back in a big way Thursday, dominating the Danes early and cruising to victory. Any offence Denmark could muster was handled by Lundqvist, who made 17 saves in his first game since his New York Rangers were beaten in five games by Pittsburgh in the NHL playoffs.

Tony Martensson scored twice for Sweden, while Kenny Jonsson, Marcus Nilson, Anton Stralman, Karl Fabricius, Mattias Weinhandl and Rickard Wallin also scored.

With Sweden leading 8-0, Kasper Degn broke Lundqvist's shutout bid when he tipped in Stefan Lassen's pass from the corner.

Peter Hirsch was in goal for seven of Sweden's goals before being replaced by Patrick Galbraith. The goaltenders combined for 35 saves.

Sweden's Niclas Wallin served the first of his two game suspension handed down by the IIHF for a hit from behind on Switzerland's Roman Wick on Wednesday.

World Hockey Championship has surprises, disappointments

cp.org — Thu, 08 May 2008 19:24:00 -0400

With the preliminary round of the IIHF World Hockey Championship in the books, here's a look at some of the surprises and disappointments so far:

Halifax

It was just six years ago that Slovakia won its first world championship and solidified its permanent place among the top contenders at this event - or so we thought.

The biggest surprise to come out of the first round at the Metro Centre is that the Slovaks are now playing to avoid relegation after finishing last in Group C. They managed only a win over Norway, which ended up getting through to the qualifying round with a surprise victory over Germany and an overtime loss to Finland.

The Norwegians were 14th a year ago and will do no worse than 12th in Canada. In fact, they have a fair shot at reaching the quarter-finals for the first time ever. That's pretty impressive for a small hockey nation that played the first round without its most notable NHLer (Philadelphia Flyers forward Patrick Thoresen).

Otherwise, all of the teams expected to do well here advanced - Canada, Finland, Latvia, Germany and the U.S.

There was nothing surprising about Canada's start to the event, although it nearly lost to a young U.S. team that will be a serious challenge come the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

Individually, Dany Heatley has been the star of the entire event with six goals and 10 points in the opening three games. That should surprise no one as Heatley has twice led a Canadian team in scoring at the world championship and both of those teams left with gold medals.

He has a legitimate shot at breaking Steve Yzerman's modern-day Canadian record of 20 points in one tournament. Yzerman set that mark in 1990.

Heatley's linemates Rick Nash and Ryan Getzlaf have also each had a strong start to the event here, as have Patrick Kane and Dustin Brown of the U.S., Finland's Mikko Koivu and Slovakia's Juraj Kolnik.

Among the players hoping to pick up their game is Canadian forward Jason Spezza, who found himself playing on the fourth line after putting up just one assist in the first three games. Expect him to produce more moving forward, especially if Canada starts getting more power-play time.

There have been other slow starters as well. Teemu Selanne and Olli Jokinen have been playing on Finland's top line but have accounted for just three points each. Both of those players have openly said that they hope to improve and each will get the chance now that Saku Koivu has arrived and will likely join them up front.

Quebec City

The mighty Russians came as advertised: temperamental, offensively explosive and the clear favourites among local fans in Quebec City who have their fingers crossed for a Russia-Canada final.

But the Russians, who have disappeared at times during their games, are expected to step it up a notch, especially after adding Evgeni Nabokov between the pipes and Andrei Markov and Fedor Tyutin to patrol the blue-line.

Nabokov's arrival is especially important with Russia down to just one healthy goaltender - Mikhail Biryukov - to end the preliminary round.

Ilya Kovalchuk and Alexei Morozov are leading the way on offence as Russia has outscored its opponents 16-6.

Undefeated Switzerland hasn't given an inch to its opponents and has capitalized on their scoring chances to end the preliminary round a perfect 3-0.

The Swiss are lead by NHL-calibre goaltending in Martin Gerber and Jonas Hiller, who have surrendered a combined four goals in three games.

Canadian-born head coach Ralph Krueger has his players playing a strict, disciplined game and has watched his team outwork both Sweden and Belarus.

Offensively, the Swiss are fast and feisty, led by Minnesota Wild prospect Julien Sprunger, who has impressed with three goals and four points while displaying physical prowess and a willingness to go to the net.

The Czechs look just as good in Group D, their only loss coming to a powerhouse Russian squad in overtime in front of a sold-out crowd at Le Pepsi Colisee.

The Czechs have a solid defence corps, led by Tomas Kaberle of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Up front, Patrik Elias and Radim Vbrata are leading the way with four goals each. Thin up the middle, the addition of playmaking centre Tomas Plekanec should help.

All six teams expected to advance here have done so including Denmark and Belarus.

France and Italy have won period battles but have been largely manhandled by opponents. The Italians finished 12th in Moscow but coach Michel Goulet says his team is trying to give some young players a chance this time around.

Among the disappointments are an undermanned Sweden missing its NHL stars. Even without the likes of Daniel Alfredsson and the Sedin twins, the Swedes have managed to score 15 goals against Belarus and France before losing to Switzerland 4-2 to finish second in Group A with a 2-1 record.

Despite finishing fourth last year in Moscow, expectations are low for Sweden. The Swedes got off to very slow starts in each of their games - France hung on through the first until Sweden opened the flood gates with nine goals. And Belarus, who beat goalie Mikael Tellqvist five times in their tournament opener, narrowly lost 6-5.

Sweden should get a boost with the addition of New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist for the next round.

Belarus coach Curt Fraser is looking for good things from his NHL-talent, including the Montreal Canadiens' trio of Andrei and Sergei Kostitsyn along with Mikhail Grabovski.

At times, the line of Alexander Ovechkin and fellow Washington Capitals' teammates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Semin has looked brilliant and have combined for five goals and nine points.

But Ovechkin is looking to improve his play. A fan favourite in Quebec City, Ovechkin has scored just two goals thus far.

And although Kovalchuk has five assists, he hasn't scored just yet. It's not for a lack of trying - he leads the Russians with 12 shots on net.

Canadian coaches push different buttons at Worlds

cp.org — Thu, 08 May 2008 02:23:00 -0400

HALIFAX - This is a different coaching assignment for Ken Hitchcock.

Only half of his Canadians players at the IIHF World Hockey Championship have worked themselves into a permanent role on the team, leaving everyone else in a state of flux while Hitchcock moves them around and looks for the magic mix.

Unlike in the NHL, he can't really bench an underperformer and call someone up from the minors. There's a real tightrope to be walked when dealing with the slow starters at this event.

"The coaches handle us a lot different," said first-line winger Rick Nash. "Guys are here kind of on their own time. I'm not saying that it's not an honour to represent Canada but I think they know we're here with our families. It's supposed to be a fun tournament as well.

"In saying that, I think Hitch has been fair. He's been on top of the guys, he's letting us know when we've got to pick it up and when we've got to be better. And I think that's a good thing."

One player that has found himself falling back in the rotation is Jason Spezza, who was skating with the fourth line during practice on Wednesday morning.

Despite that, he maintained his usual sense of humour.

"Grinding it out," Spezza said with a laugh. "That's the strength of my game."

Only one of Canada's 13 forwards spent less time on the ice than Spezza during Canada's 5-4 win over the United States on Tuesday.

Spezza started this tournament on the second line with Martin St. Louis and Eric Staal but there was one big problem - both he and Staal are natural centres and neither was able to quickly adapt to the wing. Hitchcock addressed that issue by moving Spezza to the middle of the fourth unit between the rotating group of Jamal Mayers, Jason Chimera and Patrick Sharp.

"They talked to me today and made sure that I didn't think it was something wrong," said Spezza. "I'm playing with a couple great players. Sharpie had 40 goals or close to 40 goals, I don't think it's too much of a demotion."

That's pretty important to Hitchcock.

Part of his job is ensuring that the team's morale stays as high as possible during the three-week event and that isn't always easy to do when it comes time to make tough decisions. Still, he won't shy away from those.

"No matter what the guy's career was and no matter what the guy did during the season, what he is today is what you're coaching," Hitchcock said after the U.S. game. "That's the way you got to deal with it."

The career coach is known for having a demanding style but he's also a master communicator.

After watching his team struggle at times against the Americans, Hitchcock realized he needed to take his players through specific drills to reinforce what he's been trying to teach using video. He leaves no stones unturned.

"Hitch does a real good job of that," said assistant coach Pat Burns. "He gets everybody trying to understand how we got to play to win.

"He's done a lot of work doing this, he has some experiences in these tournaments and he knows that if we play a certain way we're going to be good. If we have one or two stray lambs that get away, we've got to bring them back into the herd and say, 'Hey, this is how we got to do it.' "

Canada will play Norway Thursday (3:30 p.m. ET) after the Norwegians advanced to the qualification round by shocking Germany 3-2. Canada will also play Germany and Finland in the coming days.

"There's going to be some really tough games coming up against opponents that have great continuity in their game," said Hitchcock. "We have to play better."

In other games, Finland beat Slovakia 3-2, Switzerland defeated Sweden 4-2 and Belarus downed France 3-1.

The Canadians will need to do some jelling before the next round. The players joined the team in waves during a pre-tournament training camp and Hitchcock has only had the full lineup together for a week. His attitude has changed now that the team is playing high-intensity games like the one it had against the U.S.

"You start off this tournament asking players to play and sometimes begging players to play," said Hitchcock. "You get in a game like this, you're not asking, you're not begging, you're demanding. You're back coaching.

"These are our players and we're going to coach them to another level."

Nash is one of three Columbus Blue Jackets on the Canadian team and says he has seen the coach use a much tougher approach in the NHL than he's displayed here so far.

However, the big winger knows that might change.

"I think he's going to do whatever it takes to win," said Nash. "If it's being hard on us to get us going, that's what it takes."

Switzerland's checking units shut down Sweden in 4-2 win

cp.org — Thu, 08 May 2008 02:21:00 -0400

QUEBEC - The sluggish Swedes know they need step it up at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.

Sweden got off to another slow start Wednesday against Switzerland, but unlike their last two games when they rallied to score 15 goals in a pair of wins, the Swedes were unable to kickstart their attack in a 4-2 loss.

The result serves as a wake-up call for an undermanned Swedish team that is minus most of its NHL-based offensive talent.

"I think we didn't skate enough ... they dictated the game from the beginning to the end," Swedish captain Kenny Jonsson said. "I hope this is a good wake-up call that we have to play 60 minutes every game. The only time we played with any desperation was in the last five minutes."

In the other early game, Finland edged Slovakia 3-2 in Halifax. In the late games, Norway and Germany were to meet in Halifax while France and Belarus were scheduled to face off in Quebec City.

The Swiss clogged the neutral zone for much of the game and their checking lines succeeded in shutting down a Swedish attack.

With the win, the Swiss claimed top spot in Group A at 3-0.

Thierry Paterlini, Andreas Ambuhl, Thibault Monnet and Thomas Ziegler scored for the Swiss while Fredrik Warg and Patrik Hornqvist replied for the Swedes.

An undermanned Sweden (2-1) played passively and a lack of discipline at the end of the game cost them in an affair that had few quality scoring chances for both sides.

"They outworked us in all the parts of the game," Swedish head coach Bengt-Ake Gustaffson said.

"We couldn't compete today."

Switzerland led 2-1 after the first period one goals by Paterlini and Ambuhl.

Paterlini scored just 48 seconds into the game, dekeing Swedish goaltender Stefan Liv on a rush. Ambuhl's shot went in over Liv's shoulder as the goalie dropped down too quickly.

"Things really went the way we were hoping today," said Ralph Krueger, the Canadian-born Swiss head coach.

"We really badly needed a lead to have a chance in this game today."

Sweden got on the board at 10:47 of the first period when Warg sailed an innocent looking shot towards Swiss goaltender Jonas Hiller, who was screened on the play by Mattias Weinhandl.

Hiller, who made 28 stops, says the win should be a shot in the arm for the Swiss squad.

"It's always good to win and a win over Sweden is good for the confidence," said Hiller, who plays for the Anaheim Ducks. "But every game starts again at 0-0 and we now know that we can win against the better teams and we can do a lot with this team."

Hiller hopes to get another start during the tournament, with starter Martin Gerber of the Ottawa Senators getting a day off Wednesday.

Having two NHL-calibre goalies is a boon for the Swiss, says forward Julien Sprunger.

"Defensively we know we're solid and it gives the forwards some more confidence," Sprunger said.

After a scoreless second, the Swiss made it a two-goal lead at 5:23 of the third, when Sprunger's hit in the corner allowed Monnet to strip the puck from Anton Stralman and head in front of Liv, beating him with a backhand.

Hornqvist scored a short-handed goal at 19:01 to cut the Swiss lead to one, but penalties hamstrung the Swedes late in the game.

Niclas Wallin was given a five-minute major for checking Roman Wick from behind and received an automatic game misconduct.

A dazed Wick had to be helped off the ice and Krueger said after the game the prognosis didn't look good for the Swiss forward.

Minutes later, Vancouver Canucks defenceman Alexander Elder was given a 10-minute misconduct plus a minor penalty for checking from behind.

Ziegler added an empty-net goal for the Swiss with seven seconds left in the third.

"Its frustrating when you're losing the whole game, we had no momentum," Jonsson said. "I'm not going to say that you should hit guys from behind to get momentum but these two guys tried to finish their checks and sometimes (injuries) happen in these situations."

Liv stopped 25 in the Sweden net, but Jonsson said goaltending had nothing to do with the loss.

Sweden's No. 1 netminder Henrik Lundqvist is in Quebec City and expected to play in the qualification rounds beginning Thursday after his New York Rangers were eliminated from the NHL playoffs.

San Jose Sharks defenceman Douglas Murray is also expected to be in the lineup later this week for Sweden.

The paid attendance for the game at Le Pepsi Colisee was 7,939.

Finland 3 Slovakia 2

At Halifax, the Finns clinched top spot in Group C with a victory over the struggling Slovaks.

Niko Kapanen, Tuomo Ruutu and Teemu Selanne scored for Finland while Robert Petrovicky and Miroslav Kovacik replied for Slovakia.

Niklas Backstrom made 37 saves in the Finnish net.

The Finns (3-0) remain undefeated in the tournament while Slovakia slipped to 1-2.

Belarus 3 France 1

At Quebec, Andrei Kostitsyn and Alexei Kalhuzhny each had a goal and an assist to lead Belarus past France.

Alexei Ugarov had the other Belarussian goal, while Vitali Koval turned aside 19 shots in the win.

Olivier Coqueux had the lone goal for the French.

Belarus improved to 1-2 with the win, while France fell to 0-3.

Norway 3 Germany 2

At Halifax, Morten Ask scored the game winner with just over four minutes left in regulation as the Norwegians knocked off Germany.

Mats Zuccarello Aasen and Marius Holtet added singles for Norway (1-2), while Mats Trygg added three assists.

Philip Gogulla and Marco Sturm responded for the Germans (1-2).

Holland ruled ineligible for Germans at World Championships

cp.org — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:22:00 -0400

HALIFAX - Germany has lost defenceman Jason Holland at the IIHF World Hockey Championship but not its upset victory over Slovakia.

The former Canadian world junior player appeared in the first two games for Germany at this tournament before being deemed ineligible. IIHF rules stipulate that a player must spend four consecutive years in a country's national league before he can play internationally for another country.

Holland, a native of Morinville, Alta., has spent just three years playing for Ingolstadt ERC in Germany.

That fact went unnoticed until the German team discovered the error and reported it to the IIHF. A meeting of the championship directorate was called and it was decided that the team wouldn't have to forfeit the games Holland appeared in because of the "exceptional circumstances" surrounding his case.

Had the Germans forfeited, they would have faced a must-win game against Norway on Wednesday night to avoid the relegation round.

"I'm more than happy with this decision," said German GM Franz Reindl. "It's great the sport has overruled any paperwork."

Holland was unavailable for comment as he was travelling home, according to the team.

It was a strange day all around for the Germans, who also found out that Florian Busch remained eligible to play one day after the World Anti-Doping Agency had requested that he be suspended for refusing a doping test two months ago.

The German Ice Hockey Association cleared Busch to play before the world championship and the IIHF says it is not in a position to interfere with decisions made by its member nations.

The 23-year-old Busch refused a doping test at his home in Berlin on March 6. He was with his girlfriend at the time and was angry that the tester had come to his home.

"He acted impulsively," said German coach Uwe Krupp.

Busch, who plays pro in Germany, soon realized the mistake and successfully passed a test that was taken a few hours after he had refused the first one.

He had a goal and an assist in his first two games for the German team at the world championship. Holland had counted one assist during the event.

The defenceman had inadvertently signed a document saying that he had never played internationally for Canada. Had that been the case, he would only have needed two years in the German league to be eligible to play here.

The team's GM took full responsibility for the mistake.

"It's not Jason's fault," said Reindl. "He thought he was eligible."

The 32-year-old is a former second-round pick of the New York Islanders and was part of the Canadian team that won gold at the 1996 world junior tournament. He played 81 career NHL games before moving to Europe.

Florian Busch eligible to play for Germany at Worlds

cp.org — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:51:00 -0400

HALIFAX - Florian Busch remains eligible to play for Germany at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.

The World Anti-Doping Agency had requested that he be suspended from the event after refusing a doping test two months ago but the IIHF decided Wednesday that it would not take that action.

The German Ice Hockey Association cleared Busch to play before the start of the world championship and the IIHF says it is not in a position to interfere with decisions made by its member nations.

The 23-year-old Busch refused a doping test at his home in Berlin on March 6. He was with his girlfriend at the time and was angry that the tester had come to his home.

"He acted impulsively," said German coach Uwe Krupp.

Busch, who plays pro in Germany, soon realized the mistake and successfully passed a test that was taken a few hours after he had refused the first one.

He had a goal and an assist in his first two games for the German team at the world championship.

Russia dominant in 4-1 win over Denmark at World Championships

cp.org — Wed, 07 May 2008 03:15:00 -0400

QUEBEC - Jannik Hansen was quick to see the positive side of Denmark's 4-1 loss to powerhouse Russia at the IIHF World Hockey Championship on Tuesday.

"We can't complain about the results, 4-1 against Russia is a small victory for us," said the Danish forward, a Vancouver Canucks prospect. "Last year we lost huge to them so this is a step in the right direction."

The Russians, who hammered Denmark 9-1 at the 2007 world tournament in Moscow, dominated the Danes in a 4-1 victory to improve to 3-0 in the preliminary round.

Maxim Afinogenov, Alexander Ovechkin, Sergei Fedorov and Konstantin Gorovikov scored for Russia while Kim Staal replied for Denmark.

Danish goaltender Patrick Galbraith kept his team in the game as the Russians peppered him with 43 shots.

Playing in his first world championship, Galbraith called the chance to go head-to-head with the Russian stars an awesome experience.

"Once in a lifetime, but it was great, it was a lot of fun," he said. "I was going to save the puck but I had to give it back."

Mikhail Biryukov made 19 saves for Russia as the offensive chances were few and far between for Denmark, which slipped to 1-2.

"It came in bunches and that's something we need to be a little more consistent with, we can't go an entire period without creating something in this tournament," said Hansen.

"But then again, it's not Russia we're supposed to beat in these tournaments."

Atlanta Thrashers sniper Ilya Kovalchuk, who picked up a pair of assists for Russia, says no team can be taken lightly.

"They're getting better every year, they are a really organized team and they tried to play really defensively against us so it is really tough to score," Kovalchuk said.

"Most importantly we need to prepare ourselves for the main games in the next round."

In other scores, the Czech Republic beat Italy 7-2 and Latvia blanked Slovenia 3-0.

The snake-bitten Kovalchuk, who hasn't scored a goal yet, says every goalie is looking pretty good these days.

"Especially for me, they're all good because the pucks aren't going in," Kovalchuk said. "But we're winning and we need to respect everybody and they were trying their best."

Afinogenov opened the scoring at 10:38 of the first period, beating Galbraith with a wrist shot.

While Galbraith was making save after save, Denmark didn't record its first shot of the game until 14:55 of the first.

It would take the Danes nearly as long in the second to get a shot at the net, a long clearing attempt from their own zone at 12:02 that was easily handled by Biryukov.

A better third period allowed Denmark to finish the contest with 20 shots on goal.

But the Russians took control of the game in the second when fan favourite Ovechkin scored his second goal of the tournament on the power play at 8:07. His one-timer that beat Galbraith in the five-hole would be the eventual winner.

Fedorov, who drew an assist on the Ovechkin goal, scored one of his own on a tipped point shot on the power play later in the second that appeared to be knocked down by a high stick.

The goal went to video replay but inconclusive evidence let the ruling on the ice stand.

"It was not a goal, I could see it from the bench and the Russian players acknowledged it," said Denmark coach Mike Sirant, a Winnipeg native.

"We could have started the third period down only 2-0, but that's the way it goes ... but it was nice to get a goal at the end of the game, our players deserved to get that as a small victory in itself."

The goal was Fedorov's first at a world championship since 1990, when he last played in the tournament for the Soviet Union.

Gorovikov added a goal in the third for Russia before Staal countered for Denmark, much to the delight of a few hundred Danish fans in attendance who began parading around Le Pepsi Colisee. Attendance for the game was 8,609.

The Danes have just two players with American Hockey League experience. Morten Madsen is a Minnesota Wild draft pick who played with the Houston Aeros this season while Hansen suited up for the Manitoba Moose.

Also on the roster is Lars Eller, a St. Louis Blues first-round draft choice and the highest-ever drafted Danish player at 13th overall in 2007. He spent this season in the Swedish Elite League.

The Russians started Biryukov in goal after starter Alexander Eremenko was lost to a knee injury in a 5-4 overtime win over the Czech Republic on Sunday.

The Russians have been using Quebec Remparts goaltender Kevin Desfosses in practice.

Former Remparts star and Russian forward Alexander Radulov reached out to Desfosses after the Russians found themselves with one healthy netminder.

Russia has added San Jose Sharks goaltender Evgeni Nabokov, who will join the team in Quebec City.

The Russians have also boosted their blue-line with the addition of Andrei Markov of the Montreal Canadiens and Fedor Tyutin of the New York Rangers, who were not in the lineup on Tuesday.

Czech Republic 7 Italy 2

At Quebec City, Radim Vrbata had two goals while Tomas Kaberle added three assists as the Czechs hammered overmatched Italy.

Martin Erat added a goal and two assists for the Czechs, while Jaroslav Hlinka, Patrik Elias, Marek Zidlicky and Filip Kuba also scored.

Luca Ansoldi and Nicola Fontanive replied for Italy.

The game had no effect on the Group D standings, as the Czechs had second spot sewn up and the Italians were already bound for the relegation round.

Latvia 3 Slovenia 0

At Halifax, Edgars Masalskis made 17 saves and Latvia advanced to the qualification round with a shutout win over Slovenia.

The Slovenians finished 0-3, and will head to the relegation round.

Aleksejs Sirokovs scored twice for Latvia, with Aleksandrs Nizivijs adding another goal.

Slovenian goalie Robert Kristan made several tough saves, finishing with 35 overall.

Heatley scores in final minute, Canada edges U.S

cp.org — Wed, 07 May 2008 02:49:00 -0400

HALIFAX - It was a win so typically Canadian that it could be part of a patriotic beer ad.

The U.S. team outplayed the hosts for good stretches of Tuesday night's game but it was O Canada that was played over the Metro Centre speakers when it was over. "We played really hard right to the end," said Canadian forward Ryan Getzlaf. "We take pride in those kind of wins. We were raised that way."

He made a key play on Dany Heatley's game-winning goal with 46.8 seconds left in the third period by cutting through the middle and opening a space for his linemate. Heatley then one-timed a shot past American goalie Craig Anderson to give Canada a 5-4 victory.

In other scores, Russia beat Denmark 4-1, the Czech Republic hammered Italy 7-2 and Latvia blanked Slovenia 3-0.

The first true challenge for Canada at this IIHF World Hockey Championship exposed some flaws in the team's game.

An inability to handle the speed of the Americans was particularly glaring on this night. Canada also gave the U.S. five power plays and were scored on twice while short-handed. Still, the team found a way to win.

"We're a work in progress I guess," said captain Shane Doan. "We're going to keep working no matter what in every game. Nothing's going to come easy."

Success seems to have come quite easily to the top line of Heatley, Getzlaf and Rick Nash. They've combined for 22 points through three games here and don't look to be slowing down any.

The team played Tuesday's game in the vintage jerseys of the 1976 Canada Cup team and put on a performance many of those former players would recognize. Doan believes those successful teams of the past helped create an expectation for current Canadian teams that they'll always find a way to win.

"It's our sport we feel and we have to win," he said. "It's not really a choice. We really feel that way and that's the way it is - you have to win.

"Our first line does everything right and they do it the hard way. They drive the net, they go to the net, they create open ice. We don't necessarily rely on the pretty play, we don't rely on one individual guy. As a unit we're pretty solid and we can count on our depth. If it takes 60 minutes it takes 60 minutes."

It took all of that against the Americans.

The Metro Centre had a party-like atmosphere for the first time during this tournament thanks to a sellout crowd of 9,192. Many of them brought bells and other noise-makers and were eager to start a wave around the arena. They went nuts after Heatley scored the winner.

"It's always exciting playing in front of a soldout building with the home crowd on your side," said goalie Cam Ward, who made 29 saves and was Canada's player of the game. "It just showed how loud it can get in there."

Heatley finished with two goals while Brent Burns, Jonathan Toews and Derek Roy each added one for Canada (3-0).

Zach Parise, Patrick O'Sullivan, Dustin Brown and Jason Pominville replied for the U.S. (2-1).

The Americans' last world championship medal was a bronze in 2004 but this team proved it has the talent to be around in the late stages this year. Half of the American roster is under the age of 25 and that youthful energy was more than evident during this game.

"I thought they played their asses off," said U.S. coach John Tortorella.

Canada was fortunate to find itself up 2-0 after getting outplayed in the opening 20 minutes.

The Americans drew two quick penalties and controlled the early portion of the game before Burns scored on one of Canada's first chances. The puck came out to him at the point and he moved to the centre of the ice before snapping a shot through heavy traffic and by starter Tim Thomas at 8:26.

It didn't deter the U.S., which kept coming at Canada but was unable to solve Ward. A quick pass sent Adam Burish in alone on the Canadian goalie but he couldn't beat him on the glove hand.

Heatley made it 2-0 by scoring with 10.8 seconds to play in the first period. He knocked in a rebound from in-close.

Canada briefly looked like it might make this a rout when Toews scored 18 seconds into the second period. He had a nice second effort and beat Thomas high to put the home team up 3-0.

It had been smoke and mirrors to that point and the speedy Americans soon cut through the mirage. Parise and O'Sullivan scored 2:17 apart to cut the lead to 3-2.

"I think we showed a lot of people that we're capable of playing at the same level as these guys," said O'Sullivan.

The Canadians were able to steady the ship after that and extended their lead to 4-2 on a goal by Roy at 3:29 of the third period. He took a nice pass from Doan and slammed it by Anderson, who was sent in for the final 20 minutes after Thomas suffered a knee injury.

Two impressive American power plays erased that lead as Brown and Pominville scored 36 seconds apart. Both finished off crisp passing plays while their team was playing with a man advantage.

A potential winning goal was on Jason Chimera's stick late in the third period but his shot sailed over an empty net with Anderson down and out.

Heatley ensured that was only a footnote when he scored the winner a couple minutes later.

"We're a Canadian team, we know we have character," said Heatley. "It was a character win but I feel like we can play a lot better. And we will."

In Tuesday's other early game, Russia beat Denmark 4-1 in Quebec City. In evening action, the Czech Republic faced Italy in Quebec while and Slovenia met Latvia in Halifax.

1976 Canada Cup team honoured at World Championships

cp.org — Tue, 06 May 2008 21:16:00 -0400

HALIFAX - It took almost 32 years for someone to honour the team that won the 1976 Canada Cup but Bobby Hull never doubted that it was remembered fondly.

"I didn't think we were forgotten," he said. "It seemed like every time I went to a hockey event I was asked about the '76 team. This was just icing on the cake."

Players and coaches from that squad attended Canada's game at the IIHF World Hockey Championship on Tuesday and saw the home side play the U.S. in vintage uniforms from their era.

They were also part of a luncheon with fans earlier in the day and were honoured during the first intermission with a video montage and standing ovation at the Metro Centre.

"It has been a blast," said Lanny MacDonald, who was a young forward with that team.

He would go on to win a Stanley Cup with the Calgary Flames in 1989 but MacDonald said there was nothing more special than winning the Canada Cup.

The same goes for Bobby Orr, who believes that playing for his country was even better than lifting the Stanley Cup in 1970 and 1972.

"The Stanley Cups were great," said Orr. "But for me, (the Canada Cup) was the highlight of my career. It was the first and only time I played for my country at an international tournament."

It was also one of the last times he was able to play at a high level.

Orr was named the tournament MVP after putting up nine points in seven games. The man who many consider to be the greatest defenceman of all-time would only see action in 26 NHL games after the event before serious knee injuries forced him to retire.

The 1976 Canada Cup was the first of five such events and featured many of the best players in the world as the World Hockey Association allowed the release of its players - including Hull, who was unable to play in the 1972 Summit Series after signing a WHA contract with the Winnipeg Jets.

"Not being able to play for Canada in '72 was the biggest disappointment of my career," said Hull.

It made the Canada Cup experience even better. The Golden Jet scored five goals over the seven games.

Scotty Bowman coached the team and still remembers his lines and how he matched them up against the opposition.

"It's only 30 years ago," said Bowman. "You can't forget these players."

Many consider it the best national team ever assembled.

Canada beat Czechoslovakia two games to none in the best-of-three final, with Darryl Sittler scoring the overtime winner in the deciding game. Eighteen of the players on the team have since been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

"Greatest team ever put together," said Hull.