Canada began shedding game rust with a 16-2 win over beleaguered Germany at the world junior men’s hockey championship on Saturday in Edmonton.
Dylan Cozens of Whitehorse had a hat trick and three assists for the host country against an opponent ravaged by the COVID-19 virus.
Dawson Mercer, Philip Tomasino, Alex Newhook and Peyton Krebs each scored twice for Canada.
Kaiden Guhle, Ryan Suzuki, Jakob Pelletier, Thomas Harley and Connor McMichael also scored for the defending champions.
WATCH | Cozens leads the way for Canada:
Dylan Cozens had three goals and three assists to lead Canada’s scoring in their 16-2 victory over a short-handed Germany squad. 0:29
John Peterka and Florian Elias countered for the Germans in Rogers Place devoid of spectators because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nine German players were isolating in hotel rooms Saturday because of positive tests for the virus upon arrival in Edmonton.
Germany played 14 skaters — nine forwards and five defencemen — for a second game in as many days after falling 5-3 to Finland on Christmas Day.
The Germans couldn’t run anything resembling a real practice until the day before their first game.
Canada exploited Germany’s defensive and goaltending mistakes borne of mental and physical fatigue.
“We weren’t too focused on the score,” Cozens said. “We were just focused on playing the right way.
“It’s our first game of the tournament. We’ve got to establish our good habits
“It’s a tough spot they’re in. They’re down a lot of numbers and just coming out of quarantine. It does suck for them for sure.”
Canada’s 16 goals in a single game was two off the record of 18 set in both 1985 and 1986.
Canada faces Slovakia (1-0) in Pool A on Sunday.
Jonas Gahr replaced German starter Arno Tiefensee after one period and allowed 12 goals on 33 shots.
Tiefensee gave up four goals on 11 shots following a 45-save outing versus Finland the previous day.
Canada’s Devon Levi stopped eight of nine shots over two periods for the win. Dylan Garand played the third turning away five of six.
WATCH | Canada’s Braden Schneider gets game misconduct for check to head:
Canadian Braden Schneider was given a game misconduct for this hit to the head of Germany forward Jan-Luca Schumacher. 0:54
Canada’s Braden Schneider was ejected before the game was nine minutes old.
The defenceman’s shoulder check caught Jan-Luca Schumacher’s head for a major penalty and game misconduct.
US hammers Austria
Matthew Boldy scored a hat-trick, while Trevor Zegras added a pair of goals as the United States defeated Austria 11-0. Alex Turcotte also had three assists in the win.
Drew Helleson, John Farinacci, Brendan Brisson, Brett Berard and Sam Colangelo also scored in the victory. United States goalie Dustin Wolf made 10 saves in the win.
The Americans will next play Tuesday against the Czech Republic while the Austrians will play Sweden Monday.
WATCH | USA records 11-0 win over Austria:
Trevor Zegras had four points and Matthew Boldy tacked on a hat trick in USA’s 11-0 win over Austria at the world juniors. 0:26
Sweden thumps Czechs
Sweden opened Pool B with a 7-1 thumping of the on Saturday.
The top four teams in each pool advance to the Jan. 2 quarter-finals, followed by semifinals Jan. 4 and the medal games Jan. 5.
Canada’s tournament prep was interrupted by a 14-day quarantine midway through selection camp because a pair of players tested positive for COVID-19.
WATCH | Sweden tops Czech Republic:
Elmer Soberblom showed off his hands in tight as he went between-the-legs to extend Sweden’s lead against the Czech Republic. 0:29
Before Saturday’s opener, the majority of the Canadian players hadn’t played a meaningful game in months because of the pandemic.
Up 4-1 by the end of the first period, it became clear the game would serve as a rust-shedder for Canada and an ordeal for the Germans.
Canada’s goal celebrations became more muted as the score became lopsided, but head coach Andre Tourigny said his team couldn’t afford to step off the gas.
“We’re not a team who played 15 games together or 30 games before the camp,” Tourigny said.
“Most of those guys have four intrasquad games and one pre-competition and one competition game. We need to get better every day.
“It could have been two hundred to one. It’s not about that. It was about us playing and preparing our team and our play to move forward in the tournament.”
“We have no time to waste.”
Canada overwhelmed the tiring Germans scoring seven times on Gahr in the second period.
“This happens when you are not mentally and physically ready and able to play on this kind of level with this intensity and speed,” German head coach Tobias Abstreiter said.
“We had no tools, no battle-level, nothing to compete against Canada’s strong game. We gave up in a way and this is what I cannot accept.”
EDMONTON – The Edmonton Oilers signed defenceman Travis Dermott to a professional tryout on Friday.
Dermott, a 27-year-old from Newmarket, Ont., produced two goals, five assists and 26 penalty minutes in 50 games with the Arizona Coyotes last season.
The six-foot, 202-pound blueliner has also played for the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Toronto drafted him in the second round, 34th overall, of the 2015 NHL draft.
Over seven NHL seasons, Dermott has 16 goals and 46 assists in 329 games while averaging 16:03 in ice time.
Before the NHL, Dermott played two seasons with Oilers captain Connor McDavid for the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters. The team was coached by current Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — Maria Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam singles champion, led the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan vote her first year on the ballot — an important part to possible selection to the hall’s next class.
The organization released the voting results on Friday. American doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan finished second with Canada’s Daniel Nestor third.
The Hall of Fame said tens of thousands of fans from 120 countries cast ballots. Fan voting is one of two steps in the hall’s selection process. The second is an official group of journalists, historians, and Hall of Famers from the sport who vote on the ballot for the hall’s class of 2025.
“I am incredibly grateful to the fans all around the world who supported me during the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan votes,” Sharapova said in a statement. “It is a tremendous honor to be considered for the Hall of Fame, and having the fans’ support makes it all the more special.”
Sharapova became the first Russian woman to reach No. 1 in the world. She won Wimbledon in 2004, the U.S. Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008. She also won the French Open twice, in 2012 and 2014.
Sharapova was also part of Russia’s championship Fed Cup team in 2008 and won a silver medal at the London Olympics in 2012.
To make the hall, candidates must receive 75% or higher on combined results of the official voting group and additional percentage from the fan vote. Sharapova will have an additional three percentage points from winning the fan vote.
The Bryans, who won 16 Grand Slam doubles titles, will have two additional percentage points and Nestor, who won eight Grand Slam doubles titles, will get one extra percentage point.
The hall’s next class will be announced late next month.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The driver charged with killing NHL hockey player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew as they bicycled on a rural road had a blood-alcohol level of .087, above the .08 legal limit in New Jersey, a prosecutor said Friday.
Gaudreau, 31, and brother Matthew, 29, were killed in Carneys Point, New Jersey, on Aug. 29, the evening before they were set to serve as groomsmen at their sister Katie’s wedding.
The driver, 43-year-old Sean M. Higgins of nearby Woodstown, New Jersey, is charged with two counts of death by auto, along with reckless driving, possession of an open container and consuming alcohol in a motor vehicle. At a virtual court hearing Friday, a judge ordered that he be held for trial after prosecutors described a history of alleged road rage and aggressive driving.
“’You were probably driving like a nut like I always tell you you do. And you don’t listen to me, instead you just yell at me,’” his wife told Higgins when he called her from jail after his arrest, according to First Assistant Prosecutor Jonathan Flynn of Salem County.
The defense described Higgins as a married father and law-abiding citizen before the crash.
“He’s an empathetic individual and he’s a loving father of two daughters,” said defense lawyer Matthew Portella. “He’s a good person and he made a horrible decision that night.”
Higgins told police he had five or six beers that day and admitted to consuming alcohol while driving, according to the criminal complaint. He also failed a field sobriety test, the complaint said. A prosecutor on Friday said he had been drinking at home after finishing a work call at about 3 p.m., and having an upsetting conversation with his mother about a family matter.
He then had a two-hour phone call with a friend while he drove around in his Jeep with an open container, Flynn said. He had been driving aggressively behind a sedan going just above the 50 mph speed limit, sometimes tailgating, the female driver told police.
When she and the vehicle ahead of her slowed down and veered left to go around the cyclists, Higgins sped up and veered right, striking the Gaudreas, the two other drivers told police.
“He indicated he didn’t even see them,” said Superior Court Judge Michael J. Silvanio, who said Higgins’ admitted “impatience” caused two deaths.
Higgins faces up to 20 years, a sentence that the judge said made him a flight risk.
Higgins has a master’s degree, works in finance for an addiction treatment company, and served in combat in Iraq, his lawyers said. However, his wife said he had been drinking regularly since working from home, Flynn said.
Johnny Gaudreau, known as “Johnny Hockey,” played 10 full seasons in the league and was set to enter his third with the Columbus Blue Jackets after signing a seven-year, $68 million deal in 2022. He played his first eight seasons with the Calgary Flames, a tenure that included becoming one of the sport’s top players and a fan favorite across North America.
Widows Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau described their husbands as attached at the hip throughout their lives. Both women are expecting, and both gave moving eulogies at the double funeral on Monday.
