In 2015, future Edmonton Oilers Darnell Nurse and Connor McDavid guided a star-studded Team Canada to the Gold Medal Final in Toronto where they faced Ivan Provorov, Pavel Buchnevich, and the rest of Team Russia.
The last time the Canadians had won the Gold was back in 2009…
It’s funny. You don’t really notice how influential the fans are to a hockey game until you watch a gold medal final from a Canadian-based city that features Team Canada and one of Team Russia or Team USA. Speaking from experience, my best friend Nick and I went to the 2012 tournament but could only afford to watch one Canadian game, the opening game of the tournament where they played Finland. When Canada scored the first goal… F*ck me… I thought I was going to go deaf. The bloody roof nearly lifted off that place! And that was against the Finns! I can only imagine what it would sound like in Montreal or Toronto during a gold medal final…
Not having fans in the seats at these home games will be very interesting to see how that plays out for Team Canada…
I hope you enjoy BLH’s Game of the Night!
The following write-up on the game is courtesy of CHL.ca,
After a wild game of momentum swings and intense competition, Canada clinched gold for the first time since 2009, defeating Russia 5-4 at the Air Canada Centre. The Canadians posted a quick 2-0 lead and were up 5-1 at one point on the relentless Russians, who battled back to make for a tense finish in a sold out building.
Russian goaltender Igor Shesterkin’s night lasted just 2:32 as he was beaten on two of the three shots he faced out of the gate. Anthony Duclair (New York Rangers/Quebec Remparts) snapped a high wrister under the crossbar 23 seconds into play as he and Max Domi (London Knights) combined to register a quick chance off the forecheck. A shift later, Nick Paul (North Bay Battalion) used his long reach to get a stick on a centering pass from Brayden Point (Moose Jaw Warriors) to deflect the puck past Shesterkin and make it 2-0.
Russian coach Valeri Bragin made a move that has worked for him in the past, swapping goaltenders as he did in Buffalo during the 2011 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship gold medal game as his squad overcame a 3-0 deficit to claim gold over Canada. Hopeful for a similar result, Ilya Sorokin took over in the crease and the Russians quickly turned things around. Defenceman Dmitri Yudin found the back of the net at 9:20 from Anatoli Golyshev and Alexander Dergachev, stepping into a slapshot that beat goaltender Zachary Fucale (Quebec Remparts) through a screen inside the far post.
Canada came out of the gate fast in the second, with Connor McDavid (Erie Otters) making the score 3-1 5:08 into the period on an assist from Josh Morrissey (Kelowna Rockets). Morrissey caught the Russian defence making a line change to find McDavid busting through the middle, sending him in alone to beat Sorokin through the legs.
Max Domi would snap a wrister under the arm of Sorokin at 7:22 before setting up linemate Sam Reinhart (Kootenay Ice) for a tip on a long shot from inside the point that snuck through the legs of the Russian netminder at 12:30. Canada led 5-1 and was in full control just beyond the midway point of the second.
A Bragin timeout seemed to get the attention of his players following Reinhart’s goal to make it 5-1 for Canada. Three of his top shooters, Ivan Barbashev (Moncton Wildcats), Sergey Tolchinsky (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) and former Sarnia Sting forward Nikolay Goldobin would respond by scoring three goals in a span of 3:16, shocking the capacity crowd at the Air Canada Centre to bring Russia within a goal down 5-4. Russia outshot Canada 10-5 in the second and would embark on the third period with a powerplay.
Head Coach Benoit Groulx and his club came out for the third and calmly killed off Russia’s early powerplay, wrestling back some momentum before effectively neutralizing their dangerous offensive attack. Darnell Nurse (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) and the Canadian defensive corps played a sound third period game to limit Russian opportunities and hold on for a 5-4 victory as the ACC erupted.
Nurse was named Canada’s Player of the Game, being credited for his rugged play inside the defensive zone as he and defensive partner Shea Theodore (Seattle Thunderbirds) played the entire tournament without surrendering an even strength goal against.
Canada’s 16th gold medal in tournament history was certainly one to remember, overcoming a worthy Russian adversary that didn’t back down until the final buzzer sounded.
If you’re enjoying the series, check out this week’s previous games below!
Monday: The Punch-up in Piestany
Tuesday: 16yr old Wayne Gretzky Destroys Czechs in ’78
Wednesday: The 2005 Canadian Juggernaut That Took Out the Russians for Gold
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