You wouldn’t guess it from the score, but for a brief few minutes in the first period, this game could have been a close one.
Tons of penalty calls in the first period gave the Czechs a chance to get in the game, but excellent penalty killing on the part of the USA, in particular by Jacob Trouba on a 4-on-3 advantage, kept the Czech Republic off the board.
Trouba has been incredibly impressive in this tournament. Winnipeg Jets fan must be seriously excited by his play. I don’t have any qualms in saying that he’s been the MVP for the Americans, and could easily make the All-Star team, maybe even be named the best defender of the tournament.
Trouba doubled his points total for the tournament today with 4 assists, putting him into a tie with Alex Galchenyuk for the scoring lead among Americans.
Seth Jones also had 4 assists, in spite of taking a dirty hit in the second period that probably should have seen him kept out of action. Jones was clearly shaken up by the hit and was holding his forehead on the bench, but he didn’t miss a shift. The situation is a bit angering, considering he’s a 17 year old kid. We may find out in a few days that he’s concussed and continued to play.
Flames prospect Johnny Gaudreau has found his scoring tough the last two games. His hat trick today means he has 5 goals in his last two games, all against the former nation of Czechoslovakia.
Montreal Canadiens prospect Alex Galchenyuk once again didn’t play much, but still managed to net a beautiful assist while breaking through the middle on an American powerplay, setting up the first of Riley Barber’s two goals.
Galchenyuk is clearly not a favourite of Phil Housley’s, but even with limited ice time he just keeps getting himself on the score sheet. He has a point in every game for the Americans.
With the win, the USA has ensured a rematch with Canada. After a narrow 2-1 win in the round robin and 2 days of rest, Canada looks to have the advantage for repeat victory, but no one gave them as much trouble as the Americans.
The game will be tomorrow morning a 4:00AM EST on TSN.
