Canada, Russia hockey on track at worlds

PARIS (AFP) — Favorites Canada and Russia kept their unbeaten record at the world ice hockey championships on Monday with wins over Belarus and Germany respectively.

In Paris, two-time defending champions Canada crushed Belarus 6-0 in Group B for a maximum nine points from three matches to extend their winning run at worlds to ten games.

Tampa Bay Lightning’s Brayden Point started and finished the scoring for Canada, with Colorado Avalanche’s Dave MacKinnon scoring twice to lead the tournament goals with five.

In the same Group B, the Czech Republic fought back from 0-3 down to win a penalty shootout 4-3 over Finland. It was a second blow for Finland a day after their first ever defeat to France.

In Cologne, Russia beat tournament co-hosts Germany 6-3 to top Group A with eight points. Vadim Shipachyov had two goals and Artemi Panarin added four assists as Russia picked up a third win.