U.S. routs Canada to reach gold-medal game at World Juniors

Miracle in Ufa?

Well, something along those lines. Not only did the U.S. beat Canada in the semifinals at the World Junior Hockey Championships, it did so in devastating fashion, with a 5-1 victory in Ufa, Russia.

Team USA will play defending champion Sweden, a semifinal winner over Russia, in Saturday’s gold-medal game.

The stars for the United States in Thursday’s rout were captain Jake McCabe, who scored twice and had an assist; John Gaudreau, who had two goals; and goalie John Gibson, who made 33 saves.

Gibson, an Anaheim Ducks draft choice in 2011, plays for the Kitchener Rangers in the Ontario Hockey League.

“We got the start we wanted, scoring the all-important first goal,” said U.S. coach and former NHLer Phil Housley, in a release from USA Hockey. “We wanted to dictate the pace of the game early and we were able to do that and then it carried into the second period. We’re going to enjoy this win tonight and then start thinking about the gold medal game tomorrow.”

Gibson’s coach at Kitchener happens to be Steve Spott, who is the coach for Team Canada in Ufa. Spott told reporters that the Americans simply “outworked our hockey club.”

The goalie may not want to bring up this game right away when they all reconvene in Kitchener.

This was the second meeting between the teams in five days. On Sunday, Canada beat the United States, 2-1, in pool play. Since that loss, the U.S. has won its last three games, 9-3, 7-0, and now, 5-1.

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