Canada shuts down Czechia to move to semis at Hlinka Gretzky
Published
Liam Ruck scored twice as Canada skated to a 5-0 win over Czechia on Wednesday in the Hlinka Gretzky Cup.
Ruck's second goal came in the midst of a four-goal outburst in the final nine minutes of play for Canada (3-0).
Beckham Edwards, Daxon Rudolph and Alessandro Di Iorio also found the back of net.
Gavin Betts made 23 saves for the shutout victory.
Frantisek Poletin stopped 30 shots in net for the host Czechs (1-2).
It was the final game of the preliminary round for both teams in the under-18 men's hockey tournament. The playoffs begin on Friday.
Earlier Wednesday, Switzerland beat Finland 4-3 in overtime, the United States routed Germany 8-1, and Sweden shut out Slovakia 7-0.
Watch Canada take on the United States LIVE Friday at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT on TSN1, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.