USA wins Group B after thumping Finland 6-2

Just a few days after a shocking loss to Slovakia, the United States bounced back to win Group B after beating Finland 6-2 on Saturday.

The win means USA will face Germany in a quarterfinal matchup on Monday, while Finland will await to find out their opponent after the Canada vs. Sweden game later today.

The game started close, with Chaz Lucius scoring at 15:22 and Joakim Kemell answering a minute later on the power play. But some mistakes in the Finnish zone sunk the defending silver medalists, even after controlling the shot count 14-8.

It started when Luke Hughes made a behind-the-back pass to Rutger McGroarty on the power play at 24:57. Then, five minutes later, Jimmy Snuggerud sent the puck between the legs of Aku Koskenvuo off of a spin-o-rama to make it 3-1. Luke Hughes’ blast at 34:48 hit Koskenvuo and trickled in, giving USA the insurmountable three-goal advantage with just over five minutes to go.

Lenni Hameenaho gave his team some life on the next shift, beating Trey Augustine in close. But that was the last of the smiles for the Finns, who didn’t hit the scoresheet again. At 43:55, USA regained its three-goal advantage. This time, Logan Cooley scored on the rebound after Jimmy Snuggerud’s shot was stopped, giving USA the 5-2 lead. Lane Hutson finished things off with a late goal, making it a 6-2 game at the final buzzer.