Team Canada remains unbeaten through its first five games of the tournament, but their first game of the best-of three final was their toughest so far in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
Team Europe was the better team for a large portion of Tuesday’s game, and probably deserved a much better fate than the 3-1 defeat they were dealt. Despite outshooting the Canadians in the first period, they were down 2-0 early. The game could have turned out very differently had the score followed the run of play.
Even though they didn’t exactly deserve the win, Canada still has one of the two victories it needs to capture the trophy, and can claim another international title with a concerted, complete effort tonight.