Desbiens, Shelton guide Canada past Finland at women’s hockey world championship
Canada opened the women’s world hockey championship with a 4-1 win over Finland on Thursday.
Defender Ella Shelton led Canada with a goal and two assists. Brianne Jenner, Emma Maltais and Julia Gosling also scored at the Adirondack Back Center.
Ann-Renee Desbiens made 33 saves to improve to a career 36-7 with the national women’s team.
Petra Nieminen scored Finland’s lone goal.
St. Cloud State University goaltender Sanni Ahola stopped 32 shots for the Finns after a 29-save performance in a 4-0 loss to Czechia the previous day.
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The 23-year-old forward from Georgetown, Ont., says she’s watched almost every game and is excited to join the league next season.
Captain Marie-Philip Poulin was in Canada’s lineup Thursday after sitting out an 8-2 pre-tournament win over Finland in Kingston, Ont.
Poulin missed PWHL Montreal’s last three games before the international break with an undisclosed injury.
Canada had 18 hours to recover before the puck dropped on its second game of the tournament Friday afternoon against Switzerland (0-1).
Canada led 1-0 and 3-1 at period breaks.
The Canadians were scoreless on a pair of power-play chances in the first period and held Finland to 0-for-3 in the second.
With Ahola down in a goal-mouth scramble, Shelton roofed the puck for a power-play goal at 17:40.
Canada’s roughing and hooking penalties with Ahola pulled gave the Finns a six-on-three for the final 12 seconds, but Desbiens repelled their final attack.
Canada led 3-1 on Gosling’s goal with 32 seconds remaining in the second period.
Kristin O’Neill driving towards the back boards sent the puck back to the rookie to go forehand-backhand for her first world championship goal.
The Finns halved the deficit at 4:49. Michelle Karvinen collected her own rebound and took the puck behind the net to feed Nieminen at the side.
Natalie Spooner swooped out from behind Finland’s net to connect with Maltais in the slot at 18:02 of the second period.
Jenner dropped to her knee to convert a rebound on a Jamie Lee Rattray shot at 9:15 of the first.
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The Canadians will cap Group A games with another back-to-back Sunday afternoon against Czechia and Monday evening against the United States.
The tournament’s top five seeds in Group A and the top three from Group B advance to the April 11 quarterfinals.
The semifinals are April 13 and the medal games April 14.
Canada improved to 25-2 all-time versus Finland in world championships and 87-2-1.
Canada has won 12 gold medals in 22 women’s world hockey championship held since 1990.
Canadian teams have reached the final in all but one. The U.S. defeated host Canada 6-3 in last year’s final in Brampton, Ont.
China tops Japan in shootout
Grace Zhan made 50 saves in regulation and overtime in a standout performance and Guan Yingying scored the only shootout goal as China defeated Japan 3-2 Thursday at the world women’s hockey championship.
She stopped all 16 shots she saw in the second period, 11-of-12 in the third and four in the shootout.
Zhan, who most recently played high school hockey in the United States with Hill-Murray School in St. Paul, Minn., will join Dartmouth in NCAA Division 1 next season.
Guan also scored the tying goal in the third period, while Yang Jinglei also scored for China.
Akane Shiga, who plays for Ottawa in the Professional Women’s Hockey League, and Makoto Ito Scored for Japan. Miyuu Masuhara stopped 14 shots.
It was the opening game for both teams.
Germany topples Denmark
Laura Kluge, Ronja Hark and Emily Nix each had a goal and an assist to lead Germany to 5-1 victory over Denmark.
Germany goaltender Sandra Abstreiter made 11 saves to get the win.
Nicoline Jensen scored for Denmark, which was coming off a tournament-opening 3-1 loss to Sweden on Wednesday.
Danish goalie Emma-Sofie Nordstrom made 39 saves.
