Adelaide, the Entertainment Centre

June 24, 2016

USA 4 Canada 2

With Canada a head in the series two games to none, US Coach Dave Hanson knew this was the pivotal game. “We have been in every game and the overtime loss in Perth certainly hurt but we outplayed Canada so I have the boys ready to compete and win tonight!” The US did in deed need a win to prevent Canada from capturing the cup. With another sold out crowd in Adelaide over 7000 fans cheered on both teams as they entered the rink. With the first 10 minutes of the first period being a seesaw battle and the first game for Scott Darling of the Chicago Blacks Hawks, once again it was a goaltender battle. It was the first time that this series has had two qualified NHL goaltenders in net at the same time. Ben Scrivens, Montreal Canadiens and Stanley Cup winner with the Hawks, Darling, were like brick walls against the offensive prowess of both teams. It wasn’t until the 10 minute mark of the first period that Daniel New would put the US a head 1-0. That score stood until the one minute mark of the third when John Scott, definitely the fan favourite, scored a beauty to stretch the lead for the Americans to 2-0. Then at the eight minute mark Brett Ponich scored to half the score and the US were back on their heels. Canada tied the score at 2 and seemed to have all the momentum and ready to shut out the series but that changed quickly with a fantastic individual effort from Michael Budd, who out duelled Ben Scrivens, to give the US a 3-2 lead. Less than a minute later, Tom Olczyk sealed the deal with a perfect shot over Scrivens right shoulder and a 4-2 victory for the States. 

Best players for the game were: 

Canada Ben Scrivens, Brett Ponich - 1 goal, Chad Nehring - 2 assists

USA Scott Darling, John Scott - 1 goal, Michael Budd - 1 goal,  Tom Olczyk - 1 goal