The gold medal rematch from last year's tournament between Finland and Team USA at the World Junior Championship on Thursday was everything you expected it to be. Except, perhaps, for the result for non-Finns.
The game had hard hits and collapsing defense from the Finns, which seemed to throw off the Americans at times. And, contrary to how the Americans intended, the game also opened with three straight Finnish power plays. But it was the fourth opportunity with the man advantage that proved to be most costly for the Americans.
Our analysis of the big quarterfinal game:
Penalties prove problematic
The Americans got off to a less-than-ideal start, with Alex Turcotte taking a double minor for high sticking less than five minutes in. But the penalty-killing unit was up to the task against the Finns early on, killing off the four-minute advantage with the goal of setting the tone for special teams right off the bat. Then, with less than four minutes in the period, the Americans were penalized again, this time with John Beecher being sent off. Overall, it was not the start the Americans wanted, but they weathered the storm with three solid kills in the first.
"We're going to have to play with more discipline," assistant coach Brett Larson told the NHL Network after the first period. "We have to establish our forecheck a little bit, spend a little more time in their end."
The goalies kept it scoreless in the second, and the Americans failed to capitalize on their first power play of the game. But the third didn't start strong for Team USA, after Jack Drury took a hooking penalty and Joonas Oden made it 1-0 for the defending champs less than a minute later on the ensuring power play. It was all the scoring the defending champs would need.
When Antti Saarela took a slashing penalty with 1:15 left, it looked like the Americans might get a chance at redemption. But even after some pressure on the 6-on-4, a stunningly quick exit was at hand.
How'd the top local players do?
Trevor Zegras (Boston University) came into the game leading the tournament in scoring with no goals and nine assists, riding an impressive points streak, but was pretty much contained by the tight-checking and disciplined Finns. Shane Pinto (former South Kent Select) and Oliver Wahlstrom (Quincy, Mass), who were playing on the de facto No. 1 line, were also obviously shut down. More was expected from this potent offense. Wahlstrom, in fact, took a major penalty at the end of the game, frustration surely boiling over after another loss in a big game to the Finns. Spencer Knight (Boston College/Avon Old Farms, Darien, Conn.), Zegras and Pinto were named the top American players by team staff.
The goalie factor
Knight stood tall for the entire game, battling it out with his rival across the ice, Justus Annunen, to keep the game scoreless for more than two periods. The Finnish goal came on the power play off a one-timer from the deep slot by Oden, a rocket from in close that Knight didn't have much of a chance of stopping. Knight made 28 saves, Annunen, 30.
Glass half full
What this means is Knight and Zegras will be heading back to their respective college teams earlier than anticipated, so Boston College and Boston University could see them in the lineups as early as this weekend.
Next up
Well ... Dec. 26, 2020, in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta. (And ... so much for bold prediction No. 1.)
Paul Grant is an editor and a writer for HockeyJournal.com and Seamans Media. He previously oversaw hockey content at ESPN.com and Sporting News. You can connect with him at pgrant@hockeyjournal.com.
