Canada beats Finland 5-3 to set up a revenge match with the United States in 4 final end-off nations

Boston (AP) – Nathan Mackinnon scored twice. Connor McDavid had a goal and a decisive pass. Sidney Crosby reversed an empty net of central ice after Finland cut a deficit of four goals to one in the last minutes.

The best players in Canada took place during the confrontation of the 4 nations on Monday to obtain a revenge match of their preliminary fight filled with combat with the United States. The rivals will meet in the final of the tournament.

“This is what you need: the big games of great players,” said Crosby after the 5-3 victory over Finland. “These guys are used to playing in these big games under the spotlight and to deliver. They did again tonight.

Canada and the United States will play Thursday evening in a suite of a round match in Montreal last week which started with three fights and ended with the Americans celebrating a 3-1 victory. Canadian striker – and Boston – Brad Marchand Brud Captain will take the ice as an adversary at TD Garden in a series where fans must have been invited not to huer the national anthem of adversaries.

“We are obviously really delighted to (have) another crack at these guys. It will be an intense game, for sure, “said Marchand in the visitor’s locker room, in the corridor of the one where he has changed in the past 16 seasons.

“There is no more important rivalry in hockey than Canada-US, and I think it’s the match everyone wanted,” said Marchand. “So it’s going to be an extremely intense game, the one we are all looking forward to.”

Jordan Binnington stopped 23 shots for Canada on the same ice where he won the 2019 Stanley Cup for St. Louis Blues. Brayden Point also scored and Sam Reinhart collected three assists while the Canadians opened a 4-0 lead in the first 25 minutes.

The tournament is the NHL’s return to international competition after sitting at the 2018 and 2022 Olympic Games. He delivered Intense United States of last week In a context of icy relationships in the real world between countries, stimulated by President Donald Trump’s speeches on prices – or even transforming Canada into a 51st American state.

The Americans fell into Sweden 2-1 Monday evening in a match that lost all meaning once Canada won second place in the final. The United States has won the previous two round games, winning first place in the swimming pool.

After an ardent game in Montreal last week, Monday’s match was preceded by Huets luketes during the Canadian national anthem and all the intensity of a NHL match in the middle of the road between two teams with temporary coaches.

And then, the Finns have found life.

Esa Lindell scored with seven minutes to do it to do so 4-1, then Mikael Granlund scored twice in the last 100 seconds with the Finnish goalkeeper for an additional striker. Crosby put an end to the suspense when he returned a loose washer of central ice in the empty net.

“There were a few goals there late and arrived very close, but not today,” said Finnish striker Aleksander Barkov. “Obviously, it is not an easy task to return from a deficit of 4-0 against perhaps the best team in the world. So I think we did well there at the end. But the rest of the 50 minutes we might have and should have played a little better. »»

McDavid opened the scoring just four minutes, then Mackinnon did 2-0 less than a minute later. Before five minutes passed, the Finns had used their dead time to try to settle things.

Point gave Canadians an advance of 3-0 at the end of the first, then Mackinnon made 4-0 five minutes in the second.

It was everything for the Finnish goalkeeper Kevin Lankinen, who stopped five of the nine shots in all.

JUURY SAROS made 14 backup of the rest of the path.

Binnington stopped the first 19 shots of Finland before Lindell marks the offer for what would have been the first laundering of the tournament. With Saros drawn for an additional attacker, Granlund scored a pair of goals to reach 4-3.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl