Four Knee-Jerk Reactions From USA’s Dominant Win Over Canada

The marquee matchup between Team USA and Team Canada lived up to all the hype — and then some.

From the moment the puck dropped, the electricity formed in the shape of three fights in nine seconds.

And that was just the beginning. There was so much more to the epic tilt that saw Team USA skate away with a 3-1 victory. It was the USA’s first win against Canada in a best-on-best competition since Feb. 21, 2010, in the Vancouver Olympics preliminary round.

With the win, Team USA clinched a spot in the championship game Thursday night at TD Garden in Boston.

Here are four knee-jerk reactions from the epic showdown:

The Tkachuks Set Tone
Matthew Tkachuk may be a Boston Bruins villain, but the talented forward is definitely an American treasure.

After notching five points in Team USA’s 6-1 win over Finland on Thursday night, Tkachuk and his younger brother Brady set the tone by dropping the gloves with Brandon Hagel and Sam Bennett, respectively, in the first three seconds of the game.

Along with five-for-fighting, Brady Tkachuk led Team USA with five hits in the first 40 minutes of the game, including an absolute trucking of Drew Doughty along the boards behind Connor Hellebuyck’s net.

Matthew Tkachuk played only three shifts in the third period for a total of 1:13 ice time in the final frame with an undisclosed injury. USA head coach Mike Sullivan can sit Tkachuck against Sweden on Monday with his team already guaranteed a spot in the championship game.

Connor McDavid Shows Elite Talent
After being held to one assist in Canada’s opening night overtime win against Sweden, McDavid showed why he is the best player on the planet.

Doughty sent McDavid into the offensive zone, and the Oilers star skated past Zach Werenski and Charlie McAvoy to beat Hellebuyck to open the scoring and give Canada an early 1-0 lead.

Unfortunately for Canada, the prolific goal scorer, along with other stars Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon, couldn’t get another goal past Hellebuyck.

Charlie McAvoy Took McDavid’s Tally Personally
The Bruins defenseman got schooled by McDavid, and McAvoy appeared to take it personally.

McAvoy made sure the next time McDavid carried the puck into the offensive zone, he would be there waiting — and he made McDavid pay.

After McDavid got past Team USA captain Auston Matthews, McAvoy absolutely leveled the Canadian forward.

Connor Hellebuyck Was Outstanding
The Winnipeg Jets goaltender showed why he is leading the NHL with a .925 save percentage and a 2.06 goals-against average.

Other than allowing McDavid’s first-period goal, which even Martin Brodeur or Patrick Roy wouldn’t have stopped, Hellebuyck was perfect, turning aside the other 24 Team Canada shots.

Hellebuyck is 11-1-0, with two shutouts, while representing Team USA. He has posted a 1.50 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage across those 12 games.

After Team USA’s win, Canada, Finland and Sweden all have two points in the round-robin tournament. Canada will have to defeat Finland in regulation on Monday to earn a rematch with the USA in the championship game.

The tournament shifts to TD Garden on Monday, with Canada-Finland slated for a 1 p.m. ET puck drop, followed by USA-Sweden at 8. Both games will air on TNT.