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Jet Greaves made 34 saves as Canada shut out the United States 4-0 in the quarterfinals of the world hockey championship Thursday in Fribourg, Switzerland. The Americans applied pressure at times, including early in the third period, but Greaves stood strong, helping Canada move into the semifinals just three months after their Olympic final loss to the U.S.
“The guys did such a great job in front of me,” said Greaves. “I thought we had a great start, and we carried that throughout the game. I am grateful for where we are as a group and where we are heading. This is the best rivalry there is in hockey, and it is a privilege to be able to play these games against such a good team like the United States.”
Edmonton Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard, who led NHL defencemen in scoring last season with 95 points including 21 goals, was forced out of the game early after an illegal hit to the head by U.S. defender Ryan Lindgren. Lindgren received a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct for the hit.
Greaves, who plays for the Columbus Blue Jackets, earned praise from teammates. “I didn’t realize the calmness and the poise, and his ability to read the play,” said Canadian forward John Tavares. “He was calm and came up with the big saves when we needed them. He was the best player on the ice tonight, for sure.”
Macklin Celebrini scored his sixth goal of the tournament, while Dylan Holloway, Connor Brown, and Sidney Crosby also found the net. Crosby’s empty-net goal marked his first of the tournament, although he entered the quarters tied for the tournament lead with nine assists.
“I think that was as close to a full 60-minute effort as you can get,” Celebrini, the team captain, said. “Obviously, we gave the Americans a little life in the third, and Jet made some amazing saves, but that was a good performance by us and Jet was unbelievable.”
Devin Cooley made 34 saves for the U.S., the defending world champions.
This was the first meeting between the two teams since the 2022 Olympic final in Milan-Cortina, where the Americans won 2-1 in overtime. The rivalry has heated up over the past two years, starting with Canada’s win over the U.S. at the 2023 4 Nations Face-Off.
“Our guys were really excited about this game, especially with the result of the Olympics fresh in our minds,” said Canada head coach Misha Donskov. “We focused on our start because we haven’t been happy with how we’ve started games in this tournament. The guys really took control because they knew what this game meant — and there’s always extra motivation when you play the Americans.”
Bouchard was knocked unconscious on the ice after Lindgren’s hit at 6:12 of the opening period. “It was tough to see ‘Booch’ in that spot,” Tavares said. “We didn’t like the hit, but we created some looks on the power play, and eventually got the lead with another man-advantage.”
Canada remains on track to win its 29th world title. The team will face Finland in Saturday’s semifinal after the Finns beat Czechia 4-1. Switzerland will take on Norway in the other semifinal following their 3-1 win over Sweden, while Norway defeated Latvia 2-0.
Norway’s semifinal berth marks their best tournament finish since 1951 and their first trip to the quarterfinals since 2012. Tinus Luc Koblar scored the game-winning goal midway through their quarterfinal, with Noah Steen sealing the 2-0 victory in the final seconds.
Switzerland’s win over Sweden came after Linus Karlsson gave Sweden the early lead, but Roman Josi tied the game. The Swiss scored twice in the second period to take a 3-1 lead that Sweden could not overcome, ending their tournament run.
With files from Reuters
