REID LEADS CANADA WEST TO THIRD-STRAIGHT GOLD MEDAL GAME
CAMROSE, AB – The quest for a three-peat is still alive for Canada West at the 2008 World Junior A Challenge.
Brodie Reid scored a pair of powerplay goals as Canada West moved into Sunday’s gold medal game with a 4-1 win over Belarus in Saturday semifinal action.
The Canadians will face the United States in the final (6 p.m. MST, live on TSN2), the first time in the three-year history of the tournament that it will not be an all-Canadian finale.
Cole Wilson also scored for Canada West, who outshot the Belarussians 43-22, including 32-13 over the final 40 minutes.
Upset by Belarus 4-3 in a shootout in the tournament’s opening game last Sunday, Canada West hit the board first with a two-man advantage just past the midway point of the first period when Reid gathered in a rebound and beat goaltender Vitali Bialinski.
Canada West held an 11-9 advantage in shots on goal over the first 20 minutes, but Reid’s goal was the only one of the period.
Still riding some of the momentum of its quarter-final victory over Germany on Thursday, Belarus drew even 7:56 into the second period as Mikalai Susla’s shot snuck through the pads of Canadian netminder Kevin Genoe and was inadvertently pushed into the Canadian goal by defenceman Matt Grassi, who was trying to clear the line.
But Reid struck again to restore the Canada West lead just over three minutes after Susla’s marker, tipping a point shot from Dylan Olsen through the legs of Bialinski.
With the Canadians pouring on the pressure late in the second period – they outshot the Belarussians 20-7 in the frame – Wilson converted a feed from Rylan Schwartz to give Canada West a little insurance.
Denver Manderson rounded out the scoring on another Canadian two-man advantage in the third period, giving him a goal to go with a pair of assists.
Belarus’ loss sends it to Sunday’s bronze medal game (1 p.m. MST), where it faces Canada East.
