The U.S. Men’s National Sled Hockey Team won the International Para Hockey Cup championship today at RT Torax Arena in Ostrava. Team U.S.A. scored four goals while goaltender Griffin LaMarre earned a shutout against rival Canada.
Scoring was hard to come by in the first period with U.S.A. team captain Josh Pauls scoring the only goal of the fifteen minute opening period. Joseph Woodke, who lives and trains in Nashville, recorded the assist.
The second period proved just how feisty these two teams play when they face off against each other, and the penalty box door was very busy opening and closing as the game temperature rose. U.S.A. was finally able to capitalize on the power play as Jack Wallace found the back of the net making it 2-0 at the end of the second period.
Sled hockey great Declan Farmer buried a rebound in the third period and scored an empty net goal at the end of the game to give U.S.A. the 4-0 win. U.S.A.’s Jack Wallace was named player of the game.
Scroll to Continue
Griffin LaMarre remained steady in net and rose to the test when facing pressure from the Canadians. LaMarre, with help from backup goaltender Chris McCoy who saw a little playing time in the tournament, kept all but four shots out of the net in the six games of the tournament. Team U.S.A. outshot their opponents 41-4 over the course of the weeklong competition.
Today’s championship win was yet another dominate international performance for U.S.A.’s men’s national team. Many of the player’s on today’s roster earned gold at the Beijing Paralympic Games in March where they defeated Team Canada 5-0 in the gold medal match. The team, under head coach David Hoff, continued their strong history of success in sled hockey loving Ostrava where U.S.A. also won the 2021 and 2019 World Para Ice Hockey Championships.
Related Reading:
Team U.S.A. to Take On Team Canada in IPH Cup Championship
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at "ice hockey" – Google News…