The Phnom Penh Post

Canada demolish Russia to reach WC final

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BR A D Marchand scored twice off a pair of setup passes from Sidney Crosby as Canada rallied to beat Russia 5-3 on Saturday to reach the final of the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Crosby opened the scoring 7:40 into the first period as he had a goal and two assists while Marchand finished with two goals for the mighty Canadians who have won all four of their games in the tournament.

The line of Crosby, Marchand and Patrice Bergeron proved to be unstoppabl­e on Saturday as they finished the game with a combined seven points in front of the pro-Canadian crowd at the Air Canada Centre arena.

“It was a lot of fun playing with Crosby that is for sure,” said Marchand.

“He always comes up big in big games. That just shows how special of a player he is.”

Ca nada adva nces to t he best-oft hree f inal series where t hey will play the winner of the other semi between Sweden and Team Europe. The championsh­ip series k icks off on Tuesday in Toronto.

This was the latest chapter in the dynamic rivalry between the two most successful nations in hockey history which lately has been dominated by the Canucks.

Team Canada extended their winning streak in best-on-best events to 14 straight, dating back to a 5-3 loss to USA in the early rounds of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic men’s hockey tournament.

Sergei Bobrovsk y was br i l l ia nt i n goa l for Russia who led 2-1 at one point late in t he second period but couldn’t stop t he Canadia n juggernaut f rom batt ling back wit h t hree unanswered goals in t he f irst half of the third to take command.

Corey Perry and John Tavares also scored and goaltender Carey Price made 31 saves for Canada, who won gold in Vancouver and followed it up with another Olympic gold medal four years later in Sochi, Russia.

Marchand broke a 2-2 tie with a goal just 76 seconds into the third period on an assist from Crosby and just 20 seconds after Bobrovsky had robbed him with a glove save. Bobrovsky finished with 42 stops.

Marcha nd a lso scored t he t iei ng goal late in second on another assist f rom Crosby – Canada’s top player a nd t he leading tournament scorer wit h seven points.

Marchand, who plays for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, had a crack at a hat trick in the final seconds of the game but his shot at an empty net just missed to the left.

Marchand specialise­s in getting under the skin of his opponents but his skill with the puck is undeniable.

“We all knew he was a good player,” said goalie Price.

“There’s a reason he drives so many guys crazy.”

Crosby drew first blood for Canada in the opening period.

Team Europe were to square off against Sweden in the other semi-final yesterday.

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