WJC Countdown: Zibanejad ends Sweden’s gold drought in OT

The gold medal game of Sweden-Russia at the 2012 World Junior Hockey Championship was full of talking points and the possibility of being a high-octane, back-and-forth shootout.

Russia’s Yevgeni Kuznetsov came into the game as the tournament’s leading scorer, with six goals and seven assists in just six games, as Russia was looking to win a gold medal for the second straight year. Returning to the gold medal game for the first time since back to back appearances in 2008 and 2009, it was 19-year old Max Friberg who was turning heads with nine goals in just five games heading into the final.

Russia’s goaltender usage throughout the medal round was one of the big storylines coming into the game. 17-year old phenom Andrei Vasilevsky was Russia’s starter through three of the round robin games and was given the start in both the quarterfinal and the semifinal. 18-year Andrei Makarov had just one start in the round robin, getting the net for the team’s second round robin game against Slovakia.

After he picked up a 2-1 over the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals, Russia again turned to Vasilevsky for their semifinal against Canada. But after Vasilevsky had allowed four third-period goals to allow Canada within a goal after being up 6-1, he was pulled with just over five minutes remaining in the third period. Going in cold, Makarov held on for the 6-5 win, and was given the net for the final.

For Sweden, the big narrative was that they came in with eight silver and five bronze medals in the tournament, but just one prior gold back in 1981. Sweden’s path to the championship saw them win all five games, but just two in regulation. With a 4-3 shootout over Switzerland and a 4-3 victory over the Russians in the final game of Group A, they were awarded a quarterfinal bye. From there, they advanced to the championship with a 3-2 shootout against Finland in the semifinal.

But through 60 minutes of the gold medal game being played in Calgary, neither team was able to break through onto the scoresheet. Sweden was heavily outplaying Russia, outshooting them 50-16, but could not crack Makarov. Russia took four minor penalties through regulation, while Sweden was called for a pair of their own.

Overtime once again saw Russia unable to generate much offence, generating just one of the period’s first eight shots.

A little over ten minutes into overtime while trying to cross the red line and start a rush with his Russian teammates, current Tampa Bay Lightning star Nikita Kucherov bobbled the puck in the neutral zone. Sweden’s Mika Zibanejad, now of the New York Rangers, quickly pounced on the loose puck and broke into the offensive zone along the right-wing boards.  Both Russian defencemen — Artyom Sergeyev and Igor Ozhiganov — were caught too far up the ice, and while it wasn’t a head-on breakaway, it was a one-on-one opportunity with Zibanejad and Makarov. Crossing across the crease and switching to his backhand, Zibanejad snuck the puck on Makarov’s blocker side and won the gold medal for the Swedes.

Makarov ended the day with 57 saves and Kuznetsov was named tournament MVP, but it was likely no consolation. Interestingly, Russia was also the victim of the only other 1-0 final in World Junior history in 2000, when the Czech Republic won in a three-round shootout.

@adam_laskaris

SWEDEN’s GOLD-WINNING TEAM IN 2012