Some people probably think this kind of article is boring. But I am Canadian, and in my experience almost every Canadian loves a good hockey game, and I am sure you Americans and people in other countries that have hockey love it too. I am also sure that we all feel a little deprived with the NHL lockout eliminating the professional games we'd be normally watching at this time. So the World Junior Hockey Championships are a godsend to us!

There were ten teams entered in the WJHC: the United States, Canada, Russia, the Czech Republic, Belarus, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland and Slovakia. The ten teams were divided into two pools. Pool A included the U.S., Russia, the Czech Republic, Belarus and Switzerland. Pool B included Canada, Sweden, Finland, Slovakia and Germany.

On Tuesday, January 4, 2005, the final matches were played out. Canada and Russia played for gold and the Czech Republic and the United States battled it out for the bronze!

Most Canadians were on their feet during the Canada-Russia game, as the Canadian Junior team had not won a gold medal in the WJHC for eight years, and they were looking forward to bringing one home. It was very nerve-wracking for the audience, because Russia had always beaten Canada in any kind of championship. The two teams have a long history of rivalry -- everybody knew they were in for a great game. And it sure was!

Only 51 seconds into the first period, Canada's Ryan Getzlaf scored the first goal. Then at the 8-minute mark, Canadian Danny Syvret made the score 2-0 for Canada. Then the Russians scored their first goal 32 seconds from the end of the first period, making it 2-1.

The second period was even better than the first for the Canadians. They scored four goals! One after another they went in, putting the Canadian team further and further into the lead. The second period was definitely Canada's time.

The third period remained scoreless. And so the game ended with a dominating score of 6-1 for the Canadians!

The crowd went wild! People sang "O Canada", danced the chicken dance, sang "Na Na Na Goodbye" and waved their Canadian flags proudly. Then the young Canadian men were awarded with the gold medal, adding to a proud hockey tradition in Canada.

I believe that was the best game of hockey I have ever seen played, much better than the NHL games I have seen. It was outstanding to see the skill that these players had and their teamwork. I especially liked that the Canadian team was not all that into hitting like it was a necessary part of the game. They mostly went for the puck, and the goal, like true hockey players.

This is RaRa3810, singing off.
*Click*

Sources:
http://www.ralphsworldjr.com/
http://www.usahockey.com/2005wjc/shcedule/main/schedules//
http://ralphsworldjr.com/New2/index.php?page=news_In&dat=Jan4_2
And my own eyes =D