Canada defeats U.S. to seize gold at ladies’s hockey worlds

Canada needed to discover a totally different strategy to win a ladies’s world hockey title after its Olympic triumph earlier this yr and world championship gold a yr in the past.

This version was a piece in progress all through the event in Denmark, however Canada performed its finest recreation of the event in Sunday’s 2-1 win over archrival U.S. within the remaining.

The Canadian ladies gained their third main worldwide title within the span of a yr after beating the U.S. 3-2 for Olympic gold in February in Beijing, and 3-2 in extra time within the 2021 world championship remaining simply over a yr in the past.

“It wasn’t easy. It appeared so much totally different from our Olympic win and our final world championship win, however I believe we’re actually reassured when issues aren’t as easy we are able to discover alternative ways to win,” Canadian ahead Brianne Jenner mentioned. “We battled it out and acquired the job performed.”

WATCH | Jenner leads Canada previous U.S. for world title:

Canada edges United States for world championship gold medal

Oakville, Ont.’s Brianne Jenner scored each of Canada’s objectives en path to a 2-1 victory over their worldwide rivals within the event remaining.

After a quiet event within the scoring division, Jenner scored two second-period objectives inside a minute of one another Sunday.

Goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens was the calm eye of the storm within the third because the U.S. pushed furiously for an equalizer.

The Canadians have been outshot 12-6 within the third interval, however they blocked pictures with abandon over the ultimate two minutes when the U.S. pulled Nicole Hensley for an additional attacker.

Desbiens made 20 saves for the win, whereas Hensley stopped 17 pictures.

“I believe coming into this event, we had the boldness that we have been the most effective group on the earth,” Canadian ahead Sarah Nurse mentioned.

“We actually wished to indicate that. Profitable three gold medals in a single yr is so particular and one thing I do not know we’ll ever have the ability to do once more, nevertheless it simply exhibits how exhausting our program has labored, the place we’re right this moment.”

Discovering their kind

Canada misplaced 5-2 within the preliminary spherical to a U.S. group that appeared able to reclaim ladies’s hockey supremacy.

The Individuals appeared to soak up what lineup adjustments there have been faster than the Canadians, who have been juggling ahead line combos all through the event in an effort to search out chemistry.

Canada’s execution in an 8-1 semifinal win over the Swiss indicated the defending champions have been discovering their kind.

However the U.S. went undefeated into the ultimate with a plus-47 aim differential in comparison with Canada’s plus-22, whereas Canada had boasted the high-octane offence in Beijing.

“What we have been capable of accomplish on the Olympics was extraordinarily particular,” Jenner mentioned. “To come back in six months after an Olympics, to have the ability to have a summer time of coaching and get the main target again and attempt to defend a world title isn’t straightforward.

“I believe this was one of many hardest ones and we’re feeling fairly good we discovered a strategy to get it performed.’

Along with shifting the puck faster and cleaner than it did within the loss to the U.S., Canada additionally defended extra tenaciously within the field between and under the faceoff dots.

Canada’s energy play went 0-for-2 within the first interval earlier than Jenner transformed a 3rd likelihood within the second. The uswent 1-for-3 with a person benefit over the again half of the sport.

U.S. ahead Abby Roque, who scored her team-leading fourth power-play aim of the event with lower than a minute to play within the second interval, accused the Canadians of diving.

“I believe they’ve a lot of gamers who dive round,” Roque mentioned. “I believe it is ridiculous. It is not the best way to play hockey. We play a troublesome, disciplined recreation. That is how we’re.

“We need to play bodily like hockey must be they usually’ve acquired numerous gamers who soar into the boards.”

Canada and the U.S. have met within the remaining of all however one world championship because the inaugural event in Ottawa in 1990.

The U.S. gained 5 straight world titles, in addition to Olympic gold in 2018, earlier than Canada’s ladies heaved exhausting during the last yr on the rope within the tug of warfare that is been their rivalry.

“We have to discover a strategy to flip the script,” U.S. captain Kendall Coyne Schofield mentioned.

Jenner’s 9 objectives in Beijing matched an Olympic event report, however the veteran did not rating on the earth championship till Saturday’s semifinal.

“I believe my shot share was not nice earlier within the event, however I simply stored telling myself should you’re creating possibilities and have good habits and do one thing optimistic whenever you’re on the market, whenever you work exhausting typically you are rewarded ultimately,” she mentioned.

The 2021 world championship was delayed to August due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Worldwide Ice Hockey Federation introducing a top-tier ladies’s championship in the identical yr because the Olympic Video games for the primary time compressed three main tournaments into simply over 12 months.

“Not regular,” mentioned Canadian head coach Troy Ryan, who will coach the Canadian ladies by to the 2026 Olympic Video games.

“I do not suppose you often get thrice to peak. It may be exhausting. I really feel for this group. They discovered grit. They’re exhausted indubitably. You may see it emotionally. They’re drained attempting to stand up to their high stage thrice. They deserve a lot credit score for simply sticking with it.”

The ten-country subject in Denmark was minus Russia after it was barred by the IIHF from worldwide tournaments for that nation’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Czech Republic reached the ultimate 4 and the rostrum for the primary time Sunday beating Switzerland 4-2 for the bronze medal. The Czechs have been coached in Denmark by Calgary’s Carla Macleod, a former Canadian group defender.

WATCH | Canada beats Switzerland in semifinals:

Canada punches ticket to world championship gold medal recreation

The Canadians routed Switzerland 8-1 to advance to the gold medal recreation towards america on the IIHF ladies’s world championship in Denmark.