Martone apologizes for tapping Czechia player after empty-net goal in World Junior opener

Team Canada captain Porter Martone took accountability for actions he called “unacceptable” at the end of Canada’s 7-5 victory over Czechia to open the World Junior Championship on Boxing Day.

Canada escaped with a high-spirited, back-and-forth victory over the Czechs, who had eliminated the Canadians in the quarter-finals in back to back years, including last January in Ottawa.

Martone’s empty-net goal with a minute remaining gave Canada a two-goal lead, but the Philadelphia Flyers prospect was handed a two-minute unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for skating past the Czechia bench and tapping Czech forward Adam Novotny on the backside before skating back to his own bench.

Martone took ownership of his conduct when speaking with reporters Saturday.

“I need to apologize for the actions I took yesterday at the end of the game. That’s unacceptable and that can’t happen. As the captain of this team, the leader of this team it just sets a bad [example] for the rest of the guys. That’s on me and I can’t do that. It’s a learning experience, it’s in the past now but yeah, I take full responsibility for the actions I took yesterday,” he said.

Martone also said he takes pride in being tough to play against, but admits his celebration went too far.

“I think I’m a player who likes to play [on the line] and I went over the line, so that can’t happen. It’s something I can learn from. But yeah, I apologize to everyone, that’s unacceptable and that can’t happen again.”

“You know, you’ve just got to make sure you keep your emotions in check,” Canada head coach Dale Hunter said.

Hockey Canada issues apology

The Canadian federation also issued an apology to the Czechs for skating off the ice before shaking hands after Friday’s contest, which is common after games at the World Juniors.

“Following last night’s game, Canada’s National Junior Team skated off the ice before shaking hands with Czechia. Hockey Canada takes full responsibility for this oversight and we have apologized to the team, Czech Ice Hockey Association and IIHF for our mistake,” Hockey Canada said in a statement released Saturday afternoon.

“You know something, though, I didn’t know. But I know now, so there’ll be a handshake [tonight against Latvia] and I’ll say sorry to the Czechs,” Hunter said.

Zayne Parekh had two goals while Michael Hage had a team-high three points in Canada’s tournament-opening victory.

It will be a quick turnaround for the Canadians as they take on Latvia Saturday afternoon looking to avenge last year’s round-robin stunner, when Latvia won 3-2 in the shootout.

Watch the game LIVE on TSN1, TSN4, TSN.ca and the TSN App at 4:30pm ET/1:30pm PT with pre-game coverage getting underway 30 minutes before.