Americans Just Nudge Swiss to Move on to Semi-Finals

The best World Junior game in Toronto was saved for the final contest as the Americans barely outlast Switzerland with a 3-2 score to advance to the semi-finals on Wednesday.

The Americans were dominant in the first half of the period, with the undefeated squad taking the 2-0 lead after 10:42. The game got started with Jeremy Bracco receiving a pass undetected near the doorstep from Tage Thompson, with the Swiss defenders expecting Thompson to send the puck out to Troy Terry. The power-play goal would give the Americans the 1-0 lead, a quick start for the team in white.

A year ago, USA managed to tackle Switzerland with a 10-1 victory, their biggest win of the tournament. By the time the game hit the ten-minute mark, it was already looking to be a very one-sided contest. Luke Kunin would get the Americans second goal after Bracco sent the puck out to Kunin, who then handed it to Jordan Greenway. Greenway couldn’t get one in the net, but Kunin was there to tap it home in close to make it 2-0 USA early in the battle.

The top NHL Draft prospect in the tournament, Nico Hischier, would be the Swiss forward called upon to give his nation a fighting chance in the game. On Switzerland’s ninth shot, the Halifax Mooseheads star deked out Charlie McAvoy in front of the net and sniped it blocker side on Tyler Parsons, bringing the Swiss within a goal.

The Swiss were simply proving to be the better team in the second half of the game and they would be rewarded with the game tying goal. Following a wild scramble in front of the American net, Hischier grabbed his second of the game on a wraparound to send the crowd into an absolute frenzy at 46:11.

The tie game, however, wouldn’t last for long. Just 18 seconds later on the power-play, Jordan Greenway banged home a rebound with the man advantage to give USA the 3-2 lead with 13 minutes still left to play in the game. It turned out to be the game-winning goal for the Americans, who held on to defeat the Swiss by a score of 3-2 on Tuesday.

With the win, the Americans will play Russia in the first semi-final game on Wednesday, a 3:00 PM start at the Bell Centre in Montreal. 

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Photo from Anders Marshall/EuroHockey.com

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