Golden Troika - Canada wins third-straight gold!
LEKSAND, Sweden (CP) - Canada won a third straight world junior hockey championship and its first in Europe in a decade with a 4-2 win over Russia on Friday.
After taking the title in Vancouver last year and in Grand Forks, N.D., in 2005, the challenge for this Canadian squad was to win it outside North America. The country hadn't done so since 1997 in Geneva, Switzerland.
"It's unbelievable, a great feeling," Canadian forward Jonathan Toews said. "Tonight was a battle from start to finish. The Russians are a great team but we came out hard and finished hard, too."
Canadian defenceman Marc Staal also won gold in Vancouver but said this year's victory is a "totally different feeling."
"Winning in Europe is unbelievable," he said. "From the start (of the tournament) we just kept it simple. We clogged up the middle, teams got frustrated and turned it over."
Defenceman Kris Russell also won his second straight gold.
"Both are special and both are unique but to win it over here where Canada hasn't won in 10 years is quite a feat," he said.
Canada rode its excellent goaltending, defencemen and special teams to the final and the only question mark then was whether the team could produce enough goals at even-strength against the skilled and speedy Russians.
"The guys that we knew could score came through for us tonight," said Canadian coach Craig Hartsburg.
The Canadians were snakebitten in their semifinal against the U.S. and won that game 2-1 via a shootout.
But University of Michigan forward Andrew Cogliano, Bryan Little of the Barrie Colts and North Dakota forward Toews all scored in a five-minute span starting at 15:35 of the first period, with power-play goals by Little and Toews.
"We got that quick start and it made it easier for me to play," Canadian goaltender Carey Price said.
Brad Marchand of the Val-d'Or Foreurs gave Canada a 4-0 lead six minutes into the second period, but Pavel Valentenko and Gennadi Churilov scored power-play goals for Russia to cut Canada's lead in half heading into the third.
Both sides had power-play opportunities in the third period they couldn't convert. Russia pressed for a goal, but couldn't solve Price in the third period. Canada also withstood being two men down late in the third after Staal took a penalty for tripping and the Russians pulled their goaltender.
Price was named tournament MVP by the media and chosen best goaltender of the tournament by the International Ice Hockey Federation directorate.
He was the difference in Canada even getting to the final with his outstanding performance in overtime and in the shootout of the semifinal.
The Montreal Canadiens' draft pick stopped 25 of 27 shots against Russia and made a key stop on Anton Krysanov, who was breaking in alone short-handed early in the third period.
Russian counterpart Sergei Varlamov, a Washington Capitals draft pick, also made 25 saves.
Canadian captain and defenceman Kristopher Letang and Toews were named to the all-star team.
Hartsburg switched centres heading into the game, putting Toews between Steve Downie and Marchand and moving Cogliano to the second line with Tom Pyatt and Ryan O'Marra.
Cogliano and Little scored their first goals in regulation time in the tournament, after scoring in the shootout against the U.S. in the semifinal.
Andrei Kiryukhin dropped the puck down to Churilov at the face-off circle and his sharp-angled shot beat Price with 36 left in the second period.
Valentenko scored Russia's first goal at 11:27 of the second period. Price couldn't see the puck behind a couple of Russian bodies and Price was beaten stick-side by Valentenko's shot from the blue-line.
After helping kill off a second Russian power-play, Toews drove down the left wing and fed a charging Marchand, who shovelled the puck past Varlamov at the six-minute mark of the second period to make it 4-0 for Canada.
Russia opened the second period with a man advantage, during which Andrei Kiryukhin's blast from the blue-line squeaked between Price's pads and slid towards the goal-line. Russell stepped in to clear the puck.
Downie of the Peterborough Petes collected a rebound and sent the puck over to Toews at the hashmarks, where Toews whipped the puck high over Varlamov's stick to make it 3-0 with a power-play goal at 18:02 of the first period.
Little backhanded a rebound on a Letang shot over Varlamov's stick at 17:29.
Ryan O'Marra of the Saginaw Spirit cruised through the slot and dished the puck to an unchecked Cogliano, who fired the puck past Varlamov's glove at 15:35.
James Neal of the Plymouth Whalers dealt Igor Musatov a hard check at centre ice early in the first period.
Price dropped his pads and stopped a streaking Igor Makarov coming down the middle just less than three minutes into the game.
About 300 fans were among the announced crowd of 5,223 at Ejendals Arena to cheer on the defending champions.
A large group of them in the standing section of rink began chanting "We want gold" 10 minutes before the puck dropped and "You've got nothing" when Canada took a 4-0 lead.
They were joined by several Swedes, including a Swedish drummer, because the Canadians had cheered for their country in a 2-1 loss to the U.S. in the bronze-medal game earlier.
Following the game, the arena announcer specifically thanked the Canadian fans who were in Sweden for their enthusiasm throughout the tournament.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper watched the game from Ottawa. During a brief phone with Hartsburg carried live on TSN, he said the team had made all of Canada proud.
"You had the whole country cheering for you," said Harper. "I think everybody has taken an early weekend to watch the game."
Notes: The 2008 world junior hockey championship will be held in Pardubice and Liberec, Czech Republic ... Canada will have five players eligible to return for the 2008 tournament: defenceman Karl Alzner, goaltender Leland Irving and forwards Sam Gagner, Brad Marchand and Jonathan Toews ... Belarus and Germany were relegated back down to the B world championship, while Denmark and Kazakhstan earned promotion to the A tournament in the Czech Republic.
GAME SUMMARY
LEKSAND, Sweden (CP) -- World junior hockey championship gold-medal game Friday:
First Period
1. Canada, Cogliano 1 (O'Marra, Pyatt) 15:35
2. Canada, Little 1 (Letang) 17:29 (pp)
3. Canada, Toews 4 (Downie, Franson) 18:02 (pp)
Penalties -- Churilov Rus (slashing) 7:00, Anisimov Rus (holding) 16:47, Valetenko Rus (high-sticking) 17:47, Helm Cda (boarding) 19:02.
Second Period
4. Canada, Marchand 2 (Toews) 6:00
5. Russia, Valentenko 2 11:27 (pp)
6. Russia, Churilov 2 (Loginov) 19:24 (pp)
Penalties -- Downie Cda (roughing) Anikeyenko Rus (charging) 2:42, Staal Cda (high-sticking) 3:43, Alzner Cda (holding) 11:21, Toews Cda (hooking) Kucheryavenko Rus (unsportsmanlike conduct) 12:11, Toews Cda (hooking) 15:09, Letang Cda (roughing) Glovatsky Rus (roughing) 15:09, O'Marra Cda (high-sticking) 19:03.
Third Period
No scoring.
Penalties -- Ryasensky Rus (interference) 2:33, Bumagin Rus (hooking) 2:50, Helm Cda (hooking) 7:34, Little Cda (checking to the head, misconduct, minor served by Marchand) 11:23, Staal Cda (tripping) 18:12.
Shots on goal by
Canada 15 11 3--29
Russia 7 10 10--27
Goal (shots-saves) -- Canada, Price (W, 6-0); Russia, Varlamov (L, 5-1)
Power plays (goals-chances) -- Canada 2-5; Russia 2-8.
Referee -- Danny Kurmann (Switzerland); Linesmen -- Milan Novak (Slovakia), Fredrik Ulriksson (Sweden).
Attendance -- 5,223 (7,650).
'Family Guy' Staff Back at Work
Once again, rumors of the demise of "Family Guy" appear to have been greatly exaggerated.
Scribes on FOX's apparently unkillable animated comedy returned to work this week after a two-month hiatus that led many naysayers to suggest that "Family Guy" might be down for the count once again.
Initially scheduled to kick off writing on the sixth season of "Family Guy" back in late October, the show's staff was sent home as 20th Century Fox TV attempted to iron out a new deal with series creator/voice/executive producer Seth MacFarlane.
While both industry trade papers agree that MacFarlane fresh pact with the studio remains unconsummated, the "Family Guy" writers were called back into the offices on Tuesday (Jan. 2) and started breaking stories on Wednesday.
MacFarlane, who also executive produces "American Dad" and the upcoming "The Winner" for FOX, is expected to have a lucrative deal in place soon.
The Couch Potato Report - January 5th, 2007
This week The Couch Potato Report shines the spotlight on a lost series, an invincible man, and some treasures.
Every Canadian hockey fan of a certain vintage remembers where they were in September of 1972.
And those of us who aren't old enough to remember where we were, still know all about Paul Henderson's immortal goal.
But few of us have the same recollection for September of 1974, even though Team Canada was playing the Russians again.
That is primarily due to the fact that the National Hockey League and it's players told Hockey Canada that they weren't interested in playing the Russians again, so a team of WHA all-stars accepted the challenge.
Today, we can hear the roster of the 1974 team and acknowledge that it is equal in many ways the squad who were skating behind Paul Henderson when he scored the greatest goal in Canadian hockey history in 1972.
But in 1974 the WHA was an ugly stepsister to the NHL, and many people didn't consider the leagues equal, so the series didn't get the same hype of the previous incarnation.
Until now as TEAM CANADA 1974: THE LOST SERIES has come out as a four-disc box set.
TEAM CANADA 1974: THE LOST SERIES is a superb 4-DVD set that presents seven of the eight games from the series. Games that have been unseen since their original broadcast, plus a documentary about the series and a commentary track over one of the games from Frank Mahovlich and Gordie Howe.
Howe is featured prominantly in this Box Set and I enjoyed every second of footage on Mr. Hockey.
I also really liked watching and listening to Bobby Hull.
TEAM CANADA 1974: THE LOST SERIES is a great piece of Canada's international hockey history and even though some of the audio and images are less than pristine since the original broadcast tapes were destroyed years ago, the set is still full of great hockey highlights.
Now, if you are a fan of Canadian hockey and would like to pick up this set, be warned that TEAM CANADA 1974: THE LOST SERIES is limited to 10,000 sets
Yes, the superb TEAM CANADA 1974 Box Set is limited to 10,000 copies, but you don't have to worry about stores running out of copies of the film INVINCIBLE, there will be lots out there to buy, and to rent.
Over the past few years the genre of of sports movies featuring a person who rises above the odds has started to become so cliche that I was starting to think that I would never actually enjoy one of these films again.
GLORY ROAD, REMEMBER THE TITANS, MIRACLE, PREFONTAINE, and FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS are just a few examples of some of the films that I haven't enjoyed from the genre I call "Predictable Sports Films."
And when I first heard about the film INVINCIBLE about a part time bartender and teacher in Philadelphia who gets an opportunity to try out for the National Football League's Phildelphia Eagles I thought it had "Predictable Sports Film" written all over it.
But INVINCIBLE rises above the cliches and is a very entertaining movie.
Don't mistake me, the film does have it's moments where it treads upon the same ground predictible ground as the many other sports movies that have come before it, but while heading toward that path, this based on a true story about Vince Papale, who was 30 years old, almost out of work, abandoned by his wife, and biding time as a bartender when he answered an open call for tryouts for the Eagles in 1976, is still a very entertaining movie.
I really enjoyed INVINCIBLE!
Our final four titles this week are the latest releases in the WALT DISNEY TREASURES collection.
The WALT DISNEY TREASURES are two disc sets of classic Disney works, covering productions from the studio's earliest days to more recent work.
The latest releases are THE COMPLETE PLUTO - VOLUME TWO with Mickey's faithful friend in twenty-plus cartoons.
MORE SILLY SYMPHONIES completes the series of music-themed cartoons that Walt Disney created to train his artists and to experiment with new techniques and visual styles.
If you saw them originally, or when they were aired again in the 1970s, THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB FEATURING THE HARDY BOYS might bring back some memories for you, the same way it did for me.
If you have young kids who didn't see them originally, feel free to get them involved in "The Mystery of The Applegate Treasure."
And the final new WALT DISNEY TREASURES release is YOUR HOST WALT DISNEY where we get to see several programs hosted by the man himself.
Including one with a Moose Jaw born entertainer named Art Linkletter.
I always enjoy the WALT DISNEY TREASURES releases as they are a great way to look back on animation, television and the entertainment industry itself in some cases as it was getting started.
And I enjoyed these releases too!
YOUR HOST WALT DISNEY, THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB FEATURING THE HARDY BOYS, MORE SILLY SYMPHONIES and THE COMPLETE PLUTO VOLUME TWO are all very entertaining and they are available now on DVD as part of the WALT DISNEY TREASURES collection along with the also entertaining INVINCIBLE
and the superb TEAM CANADA - THE LOST SERIES.
Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report
THE WAR TAPES is a documentary filmed by actual servicemen in Iraq and in a few weeks it will probably get an Academy Award nomination; THINGS TO DO is a small Canadian film that will probably not get an Oscar nod, but it is still fun to watch.
Also next week, I will talk about the martial arts based FEARLESS, the set in a cave horror movie called THE DESCENT and a little known film about some SNAKES ON A PLANE.
I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.
For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next time on The Couch!