|  Wys³any: 2019-02-23 06:28:25 Temat postu: d out to be the games only goal a
SOCHI, Russia -- Shea Webers shot left his stick, and by the time it hit the net, Canada was able to exhale. For much of the night, Team Canada forced everyone to hold their collective breath while goaltender Kristers Gudlevskis and Latvia played with house money in the mens Olympic hockey quarter-final. Webers third-period goal was enough to break the tie and help the Canadians escape with a 2-1 victory at Bolshoy Ice Dome on Wednesday. The win gave Canada a spot in semifinals, where it will meet the rival Americans for a berth in the gold-medal game. The United States beat the Czech Republic 5-2 at Shayba Arena to move on. Nerves from the Canadian contingent were palpable throughout the game against Latvia, from the time Lauris Darzins scored in the first period to tie the score until Weber reclaimed the lead with a blast from the point on the power play at 13:06 of the third. Had 11th-seeded Latvia beaten third-seeded Canada, it would have arguably been one of the biggest upsets in the history of Olympic hockey. Instead, Canada was able to survive an unexpected test against a gritty group coached by Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., native Ted Nolan. Latvia was outshot 57-16 overall but managed to hang in the game thanks to 55 saves from Gudlevskis, a prospect in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization. "It can get to you," Canadian forward Patrick Marleau said Canadas struggles to beat Gudlevskis. Patrick Sharp scored Canadas first goal in the first period, and goalie Carey Price made 15 saves. But it was Webers goal through a screen after a give-and-go at the points with Drew Doughty with three seconds left on a power play that made the difference. With puck drop coming just two hours after host Russias tournament ended with a stunning 3-1 loss to Finland, the atmosphere inside Bolshoy was, as Pavel Datsyuk described his emotions, "empty." Previously the home fans filled the arena, chanted "Roos-ee-ah" and at least revelled in rooting against Canada. This time they were more subdued, save for joining in with some "Lat-vee-ah" chants started by a group wearing bright orange. Gudlevskis gave them a chance to cheer with a big save on Jamie Benn two minutes in, and Chris Kunitz a chance to gasp as he hit the crossbar seconds after Sidney Crosby almost scored. But Canadian fans got the first chance to celebrate when the fourth line opened the scoring 13:37 in. Rick Nash collected the puck in front of the net, skated behind it just long enough for John Tavares to set a screen and fed Sharp, who hit the open hole perfectly to make it 1-0. Not long after, a set neutral-zone play by Latvia led to a breakaway on Price and a tie score. Defenceman Sandis Ozolinsh stepped off the ice and Darzins, a forward who impressed with a pretty toe drag earlier, stepped on just in time for Winnipeg Jets property Arturs Kulda to spring him for a pass. Canadian defencemen Jay Bouwmeester and Alex Pietrangelo got beat clean, and Darzins scored on a back-hander over Prices right pad at 15:41. That was enough to fire up many Russian fans to make this much more like a hostile, road game for Canada. On the ice it felt similar, as Ted Nolans group made the Canadians work for quality scoring chances despite a huge shot discrepancy. Early in the second period it wasnt a shot but a hit that made a huge difference for Canada and the New York Islanders. Kulda hit Tavares hard, and the fourth-line centre went down in a heap in the corner. Tavares was able to skate off under his own power and remained on the bench briefly before going down the tunnel. It was not immediately clear what the injury was. Without Tavares, coach Mike Babcock was forced to shuffle his lines, putting 13th forward Martin St. Louis on right wing with Kunitz and Crosby and sliding Bergeron down to centre the fourth line between Sharp and Nash. Canada continued the siege on Gudlevskis throughout the second period, outshooting Latvia 15-2. But it could not break through. It looked like that run was over 8:27 into the third, but a controversial call kept it 1-1. Jonathan Toews and Marleau got the puck to the goal-line and almost over, but Latvia defenceman Kristaps Sotnieks gloved it to keep it out. The ruling was that the puck did not fully cross the line, and Canada did not get a penalty shot because that cannot be awarded on review. NOTES: Forward Matt Duchene and defenceman P.K. Subban were Canadas healthy scratches vs. Latvia. Babcock said Subban, who appeared in only one of four games, has been "excellent" about handling his role. Duchene tweeted a "best of luck" message to his teammates Wednesday afternoon. ... Former Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators forward Kaspars Daugavins was scratched for Latvia because of an illness. ... The attendance was announced as 9,852. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . Still, its a start. Josh Baileys goal with 1:40 left capped a furious third-period rally, and the Islanders edged the Penguins 4-3 on Friday night. China Jerseys . The Wizards gave up two seldom-used players — forward Jan Vesely and point guard Eric Maynor. Vesely goes to the Nuggets, while Maynor gets shipped to the 76ers. Philadelphia receives two second-round draft picks, one from the Wizards in 2015 and one from the Nuggets in 2016.RALEIGH, N.C. -- Justin Peters wants the Carolina Hurricanes to believe in him. They say they do -- especially after performances like this. Peters stopped 21 shots in his third career shutout and the Hurricanes beat the New York Islanders 1-0 on Thursday night. Radek Dvorak scored a deflected goal in the first period to help the Hurricanes win their second straight following a five-game slide that coincided with a lower-body injury to starting goalie Cam Ward. Peters has allowed a total of one goal in those victories. "Hes given us an opportunity to win these last two games," coach Kirk Muller said. "Hes done his job. Wed like to say were going to score more than one or two goals, but you know what, theres nights you dont have to. Hes given us a confidence that we can just go out and play our game ... and play it the way we want to play it." Peters, making his sixth straight start, made one of his best saves in the final minute of the second period when he stopped a streaking Michael Grabner after a turnover. The Hurricanes blocked 13 shots, three by forward Tuomo Ruutu. Peters finished with the Hurricanes first shutout of the season and his first since blanking Washington last March 12. "I want to create confidence in the team. I have confidence in them, and Im just trying to build that confidence," Peters said. "Every day, we become more confident in each other because we trust each other, because were playing the right way. When we play the right way ... thats when we get rewarded." All six of Carolinas wins have come by one goal. "Games are tight and theres not a lot of room out there," Muller said. "We found a way to win." Backup Kevin Poulin made 23 saves in his second start in six days for the Islanders. They have lost two straight and four of six, and were shut out for the firstt time this season.dddddddddddd "Its frustrating to sit here and not even get a point in that game when I felt we deserved a little better," coach Jack Capuano said, "but thats the way it goes." At the very least, their penalty-kill unit showed improvement. They shut down both of Carolinas power plays after giving up four goals with the man disadvantage in a 6-2 loss to the Capitals two nights earlier. The Hurricanes, who have made a habit of falling behind early, scored the first goal of a game for the first time since mid-October -- and needed a deflection to do it. "It was a little almost unusual we got that first one," forward Jordan Staal said. Poulin tried to clear the puck from behind the net but Ron Hainsey kept it in at the blue line, then threw it at the net and Dvorak tipped it in from the side of the net at 6:39. What turned out to be the games only goal also marked Carolinas first in a 5-on-5 situation since Oct. 25. In the four games in between, they scored four goals -- two on the power play, one with a sixth attacker and one in a 4-on-4 overtime to beat Philadelphia two nights earlier. Meanwhile, the Islanders gave themselves plenty of scoring chances but too few pucks on net: New York put just 12 shots on goal during the first two periods. "We gave him an opportunity to make that first save, and our D did a good job of blocking people out in front of the net and preventing those second and third rebounds," Muller said. Added Capuano: "Missed too many shots." NOTES: Hainsey has assists in two straight games -- his only two assists of the season. ... Carolina D Brett Bellemore found himself in two fights in the second, trading punches with Matt Martin before coming to blows with Kyle Okposo. ... New Yorks Travis Hamonic scrapped with Nathan Gerbe early in the third. ' ' ' |
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