Canadian goalie Dylan Garand has long been awaiting this golden opportunity.
More than 18 months after losing to the U.S. in the finals at the 2021 world junior hockey championship, he once again has a chance to help Canada capture the tournament’s top prize.
“It’s exciting to be at this moment now. But the hardest work is ahead,” Garand said Friday after backstopping his team to a 5-2 semifinal win over Czechia, the country commonly known as the Czech Republic.
“We’ve got to do the right things here, get the right rest, recovery and be ready to go.”
Canada (6-0-0) will face either Finland (4-1-0) or Sweden (4-1-0) in Saturday’s gold-medal matchup. The two sides will meet in the second semifinal on Friday.
Garand stopped 31-of-33 shots on Friday, and one longtime teammate believes he has more to give heading into the tournament’s ultimate bout.
“He’s been steady and solid all the way through. … He’s just so focused and ready to go every game,” said Logan Stankoven, who’s played three seasons with Garand for the Kamloops Blazers in the Western Hockey League.
“There’s momentum changes throughout the game and we’re going to need him to make some big stops tomorrow, no matter who we play.”
Stankoven had a goal and an assist in the semifinal, and was one of seven players to hit the scoresheet for Canada.
Kent Johnson had a goal and two assists while Connor Bedard, Mason McTavish and Joshua Roy also scored and Olen Zellweger added three helpers.
Czech captain Jan Mysak got his side on the board midway through the third period and added an assist on David Jiricek’s power-play tally later in the frame. Jiri Kulich helped on both goals.
Goalie Tomas Suchanek made 22 saves for Czechia (2-3-1) before being replaced by Pavel Cajan to start the third period. Cajan stopped eight shots in relief.
Czechia was coming off a massive 4-2 upset victory over the reigning champion Americans in Wednesday’s quarterfinals. Canada earned its spot in the semis with a 6-3 win over Switzerland the same day.
The undefeated Canadians jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second period on Friday before the Czechs roared back in the third.
The Canadians restored their three-goal advantage with 5:34 left on the clock when Roy swept a low shot in through Cajan’s pads.
Czechia had whittled the deficit to 4-2 with a power-play tally 12:44 into the third.
Jiricek unleashed a long bomb from inside the blue line, sailing the puck through traffic and beating Garand glove side.
The Czechs got on the board midway through the third when Mysak sent a shot through the Canadian netminder for his fifth goal of the tournament.
“They’re a good team and they didn’t really get away from their game at all,” Stankoven said of the Czechs.
Looking to make up some ground in the final period, Czechia swapped netminders replacing Suchanek with Cajan coming out of the second intermission.
Canada wasn’t happy with its second period, either, Garand said.
“We didn’t play our best for the first 15 minutes there and then had a good five minutes,” he said. “We knew it wasn’t our best and we wanted to really clean it up and have a good third period.”
Canada’s second power-play goal of the day came 16:21 into the second after Czechia’s Stepan Nemec was called for slashing.
McTavish capitalized, uncorking a one-timer from the faceoff circle that went in off the crossbar, boosting Canada’s lead to 4-0.
McTavish leads the tournament in scoring with 15 points (eight goals, seven assists).
A penalty for too many men also cost the Czechs in the second.
With Czech forward Tomas Urban in the penalty box, Johnson picked up a loose puck along the boards and sliced it up the ice to Stankoven for a breakaway.
The Canadian Hockey League player of the year took a few strides then blasted a shot past Suchanek from the hash marks to give Canada a 3-0 at the 11:28 mark.
Canada was 2-for-3 on the power play Friday while Czechia went 1-for-2.
The Czechs came into the second with renewed fire and outshot the Canadians 8-0 over the first five minutes of the period.
Garand was forced to make a solid pad save 3:55 into the frame after a defensive breakdown gave Czechia’s Jakub Kos a prime opportunity in tight.
Canada took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission after Bedard put away the country’s second goal of the day late in the opening period.
Nathan Gaucher sliced the puck through the neutral zone, springing the 17-year-old phenom for a breakaway. Bedard capped the play with a blistering shot past Suchanek glove side, giving the host nation a 2-0 cushion 15:20 into the game.
The goal was Bedard’s fourth of the tournament.
Suchanek made a brilliant diving stop on Tyson Foerster’s backhand shot midway through the first to keep the game scoreless.
The Czech netminder couldn’t get a hand on to the puck, though, and Johnson wasted no time firing it in from the top of the crease to open the scoring 10:04 into the opening frame.
Johnson has two goals in the tournament — both against the Czechs.
Canada isn’t concerned about who they’ll come up against in the gold-medal game, said head coach Dave Cameron.
“Both are real good teams,” he said. “It should be a dandy game. It doesn’t matter who we face, it’s going to be a battle tomorrow.”
NOTES: Canada was playing without forward Ridly Greig, who suffered an apparent shoulder injury early in the quarterfinal win over Switzerland. Riley Kidney slotted back into the lineup after being a healthy scratch for four straight games. … Canada beat Czechia 5-1 in the preliminary round. … Czechia has not won a medal at the world juniors since 2005 when they took home bronze.
The French league’s legal commission has ordered Paris Saint-Germain to pay Kylian Mbappé the 55 million euros ($61 million) in unpaid wages that he claims he’s entitled to, the league said Thursday.
The league confirmed the decision to The Associated Press without more details, a day after the France superstar rejected a mediation offer by the commission in his dispute with his former club.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former football star Reggie Bush was at his Encino home Tuesday night when three male suspects attempted to break in, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.
“Everyone is safe,” Bush said in a text message to the newspaper.
The Los Angeles Police Dept. told the Times that a resident of the house reported hearing a window break and broken glass was found outside. Police said nothing was stolen and that three male suspects dressed in black were seen leaving the scene.
Bush starred at Southern California and in the NFL. The former running back was reinstated as the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner this year. He forfeited it in 2010 after USC was hit with sanctions partly related to Bush’s dealings with two aspiring sports marketers.
VANCOUVER – A fresh face has been gracing the B.C. Lions‘ highlight reels in recent weeks.
Midway through his second CFL campaign, wide receiver Ayden Eberhardt has contributed touchdowns in two consecutive games.
The 26-year-old wide receiver from Loveland, Colo., was the lone B.C. player to reel in a passing major in his team’s 37-23 victory over the league-leading Montreal Alouettes last Friday. The week before, he notched his first CFL touchdown in the Lions’ win over the Ottawa Redblacks.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been really good,” Eberhardt said of his recent play. “At the end of the day, the biggest stat to me is if we win. But who doesn’t love scoring?”
He’ll look to add to the tally Friday when the Leos (7-6) host the Toronto Argonauts.
Eberhardt signed with B.C. as a free agent in January 2023 and spent much of last season on the practice squad before cementing a role on the roster this year.
The six-foot-two, 195-pound University of Wyoming product has earned more opportunities in his second season, said Lions’ head coach and co-general manager Rick Campbell.
“He’s a super hard worker and very smart. He understands, has high football IQ, as we call it,” Campbell said.
The fact that Eberhardt can play virtually every receiving position helps.
“He could literally go into a game and we could throw him into a spot and he’d know exactly what he’s doing,” the coach said. “That allows him to play fast and earn the quarterback’s trust. And you see him making plays.”
Eberhardt credited his teammates, coaches and the rest of the Lions’ staff with helping him prepare for any situation he might face. They’ve all spent time teaching him the ins and outs of the Canadian game, or go over the playbook and run routes after practice, he said.
“I’ve played every single position on our offence in a game in the last two years, which is kind of crazy. But I love playing football,” he said. “I want to play any position that the team needs me to play.”
While B.C.’s lineup is studded with stars like running back William Stanback — who has a CFL-high 938 rushing yards — and wide receiver Justin McInnis — who leads the league in both receiving yards (1,074) and receiving TDs (seven) — versatility has been a critical part of the team’s back-to-back wins.
“I think we’ve got a lot of talented guys who deserve to get the ball and make big plays when they have the ball in their hands. So it’s really my job to get them the ball as much as possible,” said quarterback Nathan Rourke.
“I think that makes it easy when you can lean on those guys and, really, we’re in a situation where anyone can have a big game. And I think that’s a good place to be.”
Even with a talented lineup, the Lions face a tough test against an eager Argos side.
Toronto lost its second straight game Saturday when it dropped a 41-27 decision to Ottawa.
“We’ll have our hands full,” Rourke said. “We’ll have to adjust on the fly to whatever their game plan is. And no doubt, they’ll be ready to go so we’ll have to be as well.”
The two sides have already met once this season when the Argos handed the Lions a 35-27 loss in Toronto back on June 9.
A win on Friday would vault B.C. to the top of the West Division standings, over the 7-6 Winnipeg Blue Bombers who are on a bye week.
Collecting that victory isn’t assured, though, even with Toronto coming in on a two-game skid, Campbell said.
“They’ve hit a little bit of a rut, but they’re a really good team,” he said. “They’re very athletic. And you can really see (quarterback Chad Kelly’s) got zip on the ball. When you see him in there, he can make all the throws. So we’re expecting their best shot.”
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (6-6) AT B.C. LIONS (7-6)
Friday, B.C. Place
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: The Lions boast a 4-1 home record this season, including a 38-12 victory over the Redblacks at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, B.C., on Aug. 31. The Argos have struggled outside of BMO Field and hold a 1-5 away record. Trips to the West Coast haven’t been easy for Toronto in recent years — since 2003, the club is 4-14 in road games against B.C.
CENTURION: B.C. defensive back Garry Peters is set to appear in his 100th consecutive game. The 32-year-old from Conyers, Ga., is a two-time CFL all-star who has amassed 381 defensive tackles, 19 special teams tackles and 16 interceptions over seven seasons. “Just being on the field with the guys every day, running around, talking trash back and forth, it keeps me young,” Peters said. “It makes me feel good, and my body doesn’t really feel it. I’ve been blessed to be able to play 100 straight.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
