Canada finishes Hlinka Gretzky Cup preliminaries in first place

By Medicine Hat News on August 9, 2024.

Team Canada is off to a perfect start at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

Canada secured first place in Pool A with a 2-1 win over Sweden on Wednesday.

Medicine Hat Tigers forward Gavin McKenna scored in the third period to give Canada a 2-0 lead, the eventual winning score.

The 16-year-old Whitehorse, Yukon product is up to two goals and five points through three games at the U18 tournament hosted in Edmonton.

McKenna had a goal and two assists in Canada’s 10-0, tournament opening win over Switzerland on Monday. He added an assist in a 5-1 win Tuesday over Slovakia.

His five points are tied for sixth most in the tournament and third in Canada scoring, trailing Victoria Royals forward Cole Reschny and Émilé Guité of the Chicoutimi Saguenéens in the QMJHL.

Canada is set to face the United States in the semifinals starting today, with puck drop at 3:30 p.m. MST.

The United States finished second in Pool B, with two wins and a loss in the preliminaries.

They lost the first game of the tournament, falling 2-1 to Czechia on Monday. The U.S. beat Finland 3-1 on Tuesday and topped Germany 12-3 on Wednesday.

The top-three scoring skaters at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup are on Sweden, with forward Viktor Klingsell leading the way with three goals and 10 points. Swedish forward Ivar Stenberg is second with four goals and nine points, and Milton Gastrin is in third with three goals and nine points.

The five-day tournament wraps up Saturday with the bronze medal game set for 1:30 p.m. and the gold medal contest at 6 p.m.

Canada is looking for a third-straight gold medal, beating Czechia in 2023 at the tournament hosted in Czechia and Slovakia, with a team that featured Tigers’ forward Cayden Lindstrom. They beat Sweden in 2022 at the tournament hosted in Red Deer.

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