That's not say that there weren't tense moments in the gold medal game tonight. Canada jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Alexia Aubin, Ava Murphy and Jocelyn Amos, but the Americans weren't about to let Canada walk away with the gold medal on home soil. Seven seconds apart, Finley McCarthy and Claire Enright scored for Team USA, and there were many Canadians who held their breath watching the final twenty minutes from Madison, Wisconsin.
The bend-but-don't-break effort that the Canadians showed in the third period was different from the round-robin portion of the tournament. It seemed Canada was somewhat snakebitten against Finland in the opening game as they had no goals to show for their efforts despite putting 40 shots on Emilia Krykko as they lost 2-0 to the Finns, the first time they had ever lost to Finland in this tournament and the first time Canada had been shutout at this tournament.
After a win against the Swedes where it seemed that Canada found some of its mojo, the Americans hung a 7-0 blowout on Canada, leaving them in third-place in the pool and having to play a quarterfinal game against Slovakia. This wasn't just a loss against the Americans, though, as Canada was thoroughly outplayed by the skilled US team in the most lopsided American win over Canada at this tournament ever. The once-unflappable Canadians looked very unsure of themselves as they entered the medal round.
"It's hard to pinpoint what the key problem is," head coach Howie Draper said following the game against Team USA. "We're playing against a really good team over there. And we've got to play our best. We've got to bring whatever we can to try and better them. And we're just not quite there yet as a group."
Having seen and watched Howie Draper work his magic behind the bench up close, I had the sense that he was telling us the truth, but only showing fans the iceberg above the water. As I've come to know, Draper is an incredible student of the game, and this blowout would give him a lot of material to work with when it came to finding what worked, what didn't, who he was going to lean on moving forward, and how to correct some of the defensive lapses that the Canadians had suffered. In short, Draper and his staff - Vicky Sunohara, Tara Watchorn and Gord Woodhall - would likely have a solid gameplan for Slovakia, and would adjust accordingly for the next opponent if they were able to overcome the Slovaks.
Canada exploded for goals in the quarterfinal game against the Slovaks with a 7-0 win. Granted, the Slovaks aren't quite at the same hockey level as Canada yet, but the Canadians executed well, looked far more confident with every goal they earned, and seemed to be relaxed as they dominated the Slovaks. I'm never one to enjoy a blowout and I can't say I liked seeing Canada hammer the Slovaks, but I do know that having seven different goal scorers hit the scoresheet may bode well for future games, especially against Finland in the semifinal into which Canada advanced with their win over Slovakia.
The day off between the quarterfinal and semifinal games might have been what changed the outcome in this tournament for Canada. As I outlined above, Howie Draper's attention to detail is second-to-none, and it's likely he would have used this day to sit down with his players and go over some of the video in preparation for the Finns. I can't say this happened, of course, since I wasn't in Madison, but it wouldn't surprise me if this was the case in simply knowing how meticulous and well-prepared Coach Draper has his teams.
With Jade Iginla back in the lineup following her recovery from an injury, she made an immediate impact as she opened the scoring against Finland. Like their first game against the Finns, though, the Finnish team settled down and began defending the Canadians well once again. Tilli Keranen would rally the Finns in the second period as she scored to make it 1-1, and we were looking at a nervous third period as Canada held a large edge in shots on goal once again. Madison Chantler would play the hero, though, as her goal with just under ten minutes to play held as the winner, and Canada had booked their ticket to the final with a complete sixty-minute effort against the Finns.
The Americans had a battle on their hands in the other semifinal where Sweden gave them all they could handle, but they would meet Canada in the gold medal final once again. I suspect that the Canadians were watching the US-Sweden tilt very closely when it came to finding holes in the US defence. With the stage set, the next chapter of the Canada-US rivalry was about to be written.
Alexia Aubin - I cannot stress enough about how good she was for Stanstead College at this year's Female World Sport School Challenge - opened the scoring just 5:35 into the game when she tipped home an Ava Murphy shot past Annelies Bergmann to put Canada up 1-0. The not-yet-committed Aubin should have college coaches drooling over her skill set on both sides of the border, and I'm pretty certain she'll have a number of offers sent to her next year. After twenty minutes, Canada held the lead over an American squad who had come close, but not dented twine in the opening frame.
Canada would extend their lead with an offensive flurry over 58 seconds when Ava Murphy found the back of the net before Jocelyn Amos made it 3-0 twelve minutes into the second period, and LaBahn Arena was stunned by the quick goals to put the US down by three. The Americans, though, would get one back late in the period as Finley McCarthy's shot from high in the zone eluded Mari Pietersen in the Canadian net to breathe life into the Americans. Just seven seconds later, that deep breath was a ball oif fire as Claire Enright drove the net to chip a rebound off a long shot by Ava Lindsay past Pietersen, and it was 3-2. The horn would sound with the Americans buzzing shortly after that goal, but it would be a second-straight night with a nervous third period for Canadian fans.
What shouldn't surprise people, though, is that Howie Draper's experience with the Alberta Pandas when it comes to defending leads in championship games is nothing new. Nothing was more evident to me when watching Canada play the third period in that they attacked when given the opportunity, but rarely put themselves out of position when it came to good defensive positioning. Yes, there were a few close calls and a couple of goalposts that aided Canada's win, but the Americans are a good team that can score when given chances. Canada, though, was resilient.
When the final horn sounded, the scoreboard read 3-2 in favour of Canada as the Canadian women captured the gold medal! Despite falling to both Finland and the US in the preliminary round, the Canadians learned their lessons, corrected some mistakes, and defeated both squads en route to capturing their sixth gold medal in tournament history. It wasn't won with ease, but anything worth having comes with some sort of fight and this Canadian team learned a lot about itself in the process.
We should always remember, though, that this is a U18 tournament and these young women are still kids. They don't need the weight of a country's expectations on their shoulders at their ages, but they should hear our cheering and support from every corner of the nation. That also applies to the US women, the Finnish women, the Swedish women, the Czech women, the Slovak women, the Swiss women, and the German women who all competed admirably, determinedly, and proudly for their respective nations at all points in this tournament regardless of final standing. Well done to all the teams, the women, and the staffs for making this a great tournament after a number of delays and cancellations in prior events.
If you're looking for the next women's international event, you won't have to wait long as the 2022 IIHF Women's World Hockey Championship will take place from August 26 to September 4 in Herning and Frederikshavn, Denmark. Canada enters as the defending champions, so there may be a chance to keep this flow of gold medals running if the Canadian women's team can play well once more.
The next IIHF U18 Women's World Championship will run in 2023 as Ostersund and Brunflo, Sweden will host the event that runs from January 8 until January 15. Sweden's showing at this year's tournament should keep the hunger burning for the "Trekronorse" as Sweden looks to reclaim its spot as one of the women's hockey superpowers. With Germany being relegated this season and Japan replacing in 2023, that will make the tournament a little more interesting as Japan's showing some solid growth in their women's hockey program! Not to be too anxious, but I'm already excited at the prospects of who may be invited to play for Canada in January!
Congratulations to Canada, the 2023 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship gold medalists! Congratulations also need to be awarded to Team USA, the silver medalists, and Team Finland, the bronze medalists, for their solid tournaments as well. Madison, Wisconsin deserves a big tip of the cap for being gracious hosts, and here's hoping the "annual" part of this annual tournament remains a fixture on the IIHF calendar after the incredible week of hockey we witnessed.
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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