Kent Johnson dropped jaws on the floor with a stunning lacrosse-style goal and added an assist in the third period. Ridly Greig and Tyson Foerster also found the back of the net for the Canadians (3-0-0), while Jack Thompson, Ronan Seeley and Logan Stankoven each contributed a pair of assists. The Czech Republic (1-1-1) opened the scoring with a close range goal by Martin Risavi. It was a busy night in net for Czech goaltender Tomas Suchanek, who stopped 52 of 57 shots. Canada’s Dylan Garand made 22 saves to earn his second win of the tournament. Both teams were coming off a rest day after Canada defeated Slovakia 11-1 on Thursday, while the Czechs fell 4-3 on penalties to Finland earlier in the day. Canada will wrap up play against Finland (2-0-0) on Monday. Foerster sealed the score 7:39 into the third period, picking off a pass from Johnson in the middle of the slot, finishing and blasting a huge shot past Suchanek to give the Canadians a 5-1 advantage. Teenager Connor Bedard set up Canada’s fourth goal of the night, feeding a clean pass to McTavish, who was alone at the top of the slot. He got his arm in and put a shot through the keeper’s legs for his second goal of the game 11:05 into the second. The Canadians took a 3-1 lead with 4:48 left in the frame thanks to a power-play goal. Czech Gabriel Sturz was called for fouling and five seconds into the man advantage, Greig tipped in Seeley’s shot for his second goal of the tournament. Canada was 1-for-3 on the power play Saturday, while the Czech Republic went 0-for-2. The host nation took the lead late in the first thanks to a crucial goal that proved to be the match winner. Johnson picked up the puck on the blade of his stick behind the net, picked it up as it slid forward and curled it over Suchanek’s shoulder for an elusive Michigan goal 19 minutes into the game. McTavish left the equalizer 16:44 into the opening frame, deflecting in Thompson’s big blast in the drive. McTavish, the Canadian captain, leads the competition with 10 points (six goals, four assists). Seconds earlier, Suchanek made a stunning stop to preserve his side’s lead. Stopped at the side of the net, Johnson took a quick shot offside, but Suchanek slid up just in time to make the save with his diving glove. A quick goal gave the Czech Republic an early 1-0 cushion. Jaroslav Chmelar was sent to the box after running New York Rangers prospect Brennan Othman into the boards from behind and leaving the Canadian with a bloody nose. The play was reviewed and Chmelar was ejected with a game violation while his team was allowed to kill a five-minute penalty. Risavi gave the Czech some breathing room, putting a shot under the crossbar 5:10 into the game. The puck bounced off the net and play continued, but a video review moments later showed the puck had crossed the goal line. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect has two goals in the tournament. Earlier on Saturday, the defending champion Americans (3-0-0) remained undefeated with a 7-0 win over Austria (0-3-0). Austrian goalkeeper Leon Sommer stopped 49 of the 56 shots he faced. “I like these games,” he said with a smile. “Lots of gunshots.” Saturday’s workload wasn’t Sommer’s biggest in world junior action – he faced 64 shots in an 11-2 loss to Canada before COVID-19 wiped out the inaugural 2022 tournament in December. “I guess I’ve got the tough guys,” the goalie said. “But I love them.” Saturday’s final game pits Germany (1-1-0) against winless Switzerland (0-2-0). The qualifying round continues through Monday, with the quarterfinals set for Wednesday. The semifinals are scheduled for Friday and the medal matches will be held next Saturday. This report by The Canadian Press was first published on August 13, 2022.
