Spengler Cup roundup: Canada, HIFK eliminated in quarterfinals

Canada goes 0-3 for first time after loss to Orebro

Oerebro’s William Wikman, left, against Canada`s Colton Sceviour during the game between Sweden’s Oerebro HK and Team Canada, at the 94th Spengler Cup ice hockey tournament in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, December 29, 2022. (KEYSTONE/Melanie Duchene)

For the first time in tournament history, Canada will leave the Spengler Cup without a win after falling 3-1 to Swedish team Orebro on Thursday.

Canada finished with just four goals in three games, with Brett Connolly scoring three of them. Orebro will now play Sparta Prague on Friday at 9:10 AM ET, with the winner moving on to the final.

Orebro spent significant time on the man advantage in the first, partly aided by the game misconduct to Tobie Paquette Bisson for cross-checking. At 12:00, Filip Berglund managed to score the ice-breaker – the only goal in the first 40 minutes – to put Canada on their heels.

The Canadians had some opportunities in the middle frame, but an early third-period goal from Linus Oberg changed everything. After successfully killing a penalty, Oberg took the puck end to end and roofed it over the glove of Michael Hutchinson, giving Orebro the 2-0 lead.

Canada started to get desperate, and at 53:26, they finally got on the board. Chris DiDomenico – the top scoring Canadian in the National League – deked past a defender and fired a wrister over Jonas Arntzen, who was perfect up until that point. Canada struggled to score with the net empty late in the going, and Mathias Brome was able to slide one in for the 3-1 goal, putting an end to Canada’s title defense.

Davos edges HIFK to set up all-Swiss showdown

Davos’ Enzo Corvi during the game between Switzerland’s HC Davos and Finland’s IFK Helsinki, at the 94th Spengler Cup ice hockey tournament in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, December 29, 2022. (KEYSTONE/Melanie Duchene)

HC Davos trailed early, but it didn’t stop them from coming back and beating Finnish team HIFK 3-2 in a tight affair.

The win was a huge bounce-back for Davos, who was shelled 9-2 by Sparta Prague on Wednesday afternoon. Davos will now meet up with HC Ambri-Piotta on Friday in the second semifinal, a huge game between two league rivals.

Former Winnipeg Jets forward Kristian Vesalainen broke the deadlock, with his wrister beating Sandro Aeschlimann for the 1-0 goal at 7:49. But four minutes later, Dominik Egli set up Matej Stransky on the power play and Davos managed to tie it up, setting up a deadlock as both teams battled hard.

Davos eventually took the lead at 26:43. After Klas Dahlbeck’s shot was stopped, 39-year-old Andres Ambuhl tapped in the rebound, beating Roope Taponen for the 2-1 goal.

That advantage stood until the second minute of the third, when Eetu Koivistoinen scored on a one-timer near the net to make it 2-2. A double minor to IFK’s Roni Hirvonen proved lethal for the Finnish club. On the ensuing power play, Marc Wieser’s power-play goal put Davos up by a goal with seven minutes left, making it 3-2 – a score that would end the day’s action.

Semifinal schedule

9:10 AM ET: Sparta Prague vs. Orebro
2:15 PM ET: Davos vs Ambri-Piotta