Dylan Cozens scored shorthanded and defending champion Canada remained undefeated following a 4-1 victory over Norway in an Ice Hockey World Championship preliminary game on Thursday.
After allowing five goals in the third period during a 7-6 overtime win against Austria on Tuesday, Canada gave the Norwegians little chance.
Brandon Tanev, Andrew Mangiapane and Jared McCann also scored for Canada, which outshot Norway 33-6 in a game that didn’t generate any suspense.
“We responded very well tonight,” said Canada head coach André Tourigny. “We made decisions that showed good maturity, playing effectively in each zone. We played a complete match where the players were fully engaged. I am very proud of them,” he added.
Norway had to wait until the third period to get their first shot on goal.
“We won’t hide it, the end of the last match against Austria was eventful. We can’t afford to allow five goals in the third like we did,” stressed Cozens. “Playing like this today without even conceding a single shot on goal after 40 minutes is a good sign. »
Goaltender Nicolas Daws got his first start in goal for Canada after Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer struggled earlier in the tournament. Daws made five saves and had an assist on McCann’s empty-net goal.
Jamie Oleksiak collected two assists in the victory while defenseman Kaiden Guhle, of the Montreal Canadiens, obtained his fourth assist, a record among the Canadian troops.
Stian Solberg scored for Norway, and goalkeeper Henrik Haukeland made 29 saves.
This victory allowed Canada to maintain first place in Group A with 11 points thanks to three victories in regulation time and another in overtime. Switzerland also has 11 points in four games, but Canada has the advantage in the tiebreaker with a better goal differential, +10 compared to +8.
Canada will face Finland on Saturday.