DAWSON CREEK, B.C.- The U.S. National Under-17 Team defeated Canada White, 9-1 tonight in its semifinal game of the 2017 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.
With the win, Team USA will face Canada Red in the Championship Game tomorrow night (Nov.11) at 7 p.m. MT/ 9 p.m. ET at Encana Events Centre in Dawson Creek, B.C.
Team USA came out strong, scoring four first-period goals and outshooting Canada White 15-4 in the first.
Owen Lindmark (Naperville, Ill.) opened the scoring at 2:14 of the first shooting the puck into the net from the slot. Marshall Warren (Laurel Hollow, N.Y.) and Judd Caulfield (Grand Forks, N.D.) picked up assists on the goal.
Matthew Boldy (Millis, Mass.) netted a power play goal at the 2:55 mark of the first period with help from Cam York (Anaheim Hills, Calif.) and Jack Hughes (Orlando, Fla.).
At 6:57 of the first period, Trevor Zegras (Bedford, N.Y) tipped Case McCarthy’s (Clarence Center, N.Y.) shot to extend the U17s lead, 3-0.
Canada White replaced goaltender Taylor Gauthier after the third U.S. goal in favor of Jonathan Lemieux.
Cole Caufield (Stevens Point, Wis.) sent the puck top-shelf from the right circle on a cross-ice pass from Hughes at 11:48 to make it 4-0. Boldy also recorded an assist on the goal.
John Beecher (Elmira, N.Y.) extended Team USA’s lead, 5-0, pushing the puck between the legs of Canada White’s Lemieux. Lindmark and Alex Vlasic (Wilmette, Ill.) recorded assists on the goal.
At 6:25 of the second period, Caulfield made it a 6-0 game. McCarthy picked up his second point of the game while Michael Gildon (Plano, Texas) picked up his first with the assists.
Canada White netted its lone goal at the 16:29 mark of the second period to make it a 6-1 game heading into the third period.
Boldy scored his second power play goal for the U.S. at 1:16 of the third period to extend the U.S. lead, 7-1. York and Hughes recorded assists on the goal.
Sean Farrell (Hopkinton, Mass.) netted Team USA’s third power play goal of the game at 4:25 of the third period. Domenick Fensore (Thornwood, N.Y.) and Henry Thrun (Southborough, Mass.) tallied assists on the goal.
Drew Helleson (Farmington, Minn.) sent in another power play goal for Team USA at 11:40 of the third period with help from Zegras and Farrell.
U.S. goaltender Spencer Knight (Darien, Conn.) finished the night with 18 saves while Canada’s Gauthier and Lemieux combined for 30 saves.
NOTES: The U.S. outshot Canada White, 39-19 … The U.S. went 4-10 on the power play while Canada White went 0-7 … Case McCarthy was named the U.S. Player of the Game …Cole Caufield (5-6) and Jack Hughes (4-7) lead the tournament with 11 points each … Caufield is tied for first in tournament goals with five … Hughes leads the tournament with seven assists while Caufield is in second with six … The U.S. defeated Canada Red in its exhibition game Thursday (Nov.2) 9-1 … The U.S. was last in the Championship Game in November 2014 when it took second place … The 2017 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge includes two groups of four teams. Group A features Canada Black, Canada White, the Czech Republic and the United States, while Group B includes Canada Red, Finland, Russia and Sweden … Follow @USAHockeyNTDP on Twitter for tournament updates and join the conversation on social media by using #WorldU17 … For complete tournament coverage, visit the Hockey Canada website.
