Canadians blank Czechs
Victory sets up rematch with United States for gold medal
N.Y. Jocelyne Larocque scored and added an assist in Canada’s 4-0 win over Czechia in Saturday’s semifinals at the women’s world hockey championship.
Canada will face the defending champion United States — a 5-0 winner over Finland — in Sunday’s championship game at the Adirondack Bank Center.
Canada and the U.S. will clash in a world final for the 22nd time in 23 tournaments. The Americans beat the hosts 6-3 for the gold medal last year in Brampton.
Larocque’s goal was the 35-yearold defender’s second in 10 world championship appearances. Blayre Turnbull, Emily Clark and Sarah Fillier also scored for Canada. Canadian goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens posted a nine-save shutout. Czech counterpart Klára Peslarová stopped 43 of 47 shots.
Czechia, coached by Canadian Carla MacLeod, will play for a third straight bronze medal Sunday against the Finns.
Canada had blanked the Czechs 5-0 in the preliminary round. On Saturday, the Canadians carried a 27-6 margin in shots and 3-0 lead into the third period. Fillier, the 2023 tournament MVP, scored her second of the tournament at 4:40 of the third period, redirecting a sharp-angled Renata Fast pass between Peslarová’s pads.
The Czechs generated some sustained pressure early in the second period, but didn’t produce a dangerous scoring chance from it.
Clark scored her first of the tournament at 1:39. From behind the goal line, she flicked the puck off a sprawling Peslarová and into the net.
Clark and Larocque became the 13th and 14th Canadians to score in the tournament. Larocque drove the Czech net and shovelled the puck past Peslarová after a pass from Laura Stacey at 18:15 of the first period. At 4:32, Larocque sent the puck up ice to Stacey, who dished to Turnbull for a goal high to the stick side.
Canada didn’t score on two power-play chances and is 1-for-16 in the tournament.
Earlier, 20-year-old Laila Edwards scored a natural hat trick for the Americans against the Finns.
“She stepped up in a way that not a lot of people can, and I’m very proud of her,” said American Taylor Heise, who set up Edwards’ last two goals.
“I’m glad that she could prove that to herself. Because sometimes when you’re young and you get picked to a team like this, sometimes it takes a goal like that to prove yourself that you’re here for a reason. But we all knew that before.”