(WGR Sports Radio 550) – The six players representing the Buffalo Sabres at the World Championship in Czechia were heard from loud and clear on Saturday.
Team Canada fell behind 2-0 just four minutes into their game again Finland. It was Dylan Cozens who got them going, scoring his fourth goal of the tournament and his 17th goal in 22 career games with Team Canada. That puts Cozens fifth in the tournament in goal scoring.
Canada’s Player of the Game also had an assist, giving him four goals and five points in five games. Cozens played 15:35 of ice-time, and has also won 55.22% of his faceoffs in the tournament.
Owen Power was excellent in this game. His goal tied the score at 3-3 late in the second period, and he notched a pair of assists in the process. He was also plus-4.
In five games, Power has a goal and three assists for four points. He played 17:29 on Saturday.
Bo Byram also has a goal and three assists for four points in five games for Canada, but was thrown out of the game after playing 11:59. He got a major penalty for slashing when he came up with his stick between the legs of Jesse Puljujarvi (Pittsburgh Penguins).
It was announced on Sunday that Byram has been suspended one game for his actions.
Canada has won all five games it has played in the tournament, and is tied for first place with Switzerland in Group A.
Sweden has also won all five games played, and leads Group B by three points over Germany and five points over the United States.
The Swedes blasted Latvia, 7-2 on Saturday.
Victor Olofsson set up Rasmus Dahlin for a one-timer in the right circle, giving him his first goal of the tournament.
Dahlin also got tossed from the game after getting a major charging penalty. According to the the IIHF game recap, Dahlin hit a player high into the glass and could’ve been called for elbowing or hitting to the head.
Dahlin played 10:31 before being ejected. In five games, he has a goal and three assists for four points.
In four games, Olofsson has a goal and two assists.
JJ Peterka scored on a penalty shot, and also had another goal as Germany beat Poland, 4-2.
In six games played, the Sabres winger has five goals and three assists for eight points. The five goals ranks him second in the tournament. His eight points ranks him fourth, two behind the tournament leader Roman Josi (Nashville Predators) from Switzerland and one back of former Sabres forward Marcus Johansson (Minnesota Wild) of Sweden.
Germany is 4-2-0, but has played one more game than Sweden and the United States.
Even a former Sabres draft pick got into the fray on Saturday, as Brandon Hagel (Tampa Bay Lightning) got the game-winning goal for Canada.
The Sabres took Hagel in the sixth round of the 2016 NHL Draft, but then general manager Jason Botterill declined to sign him after he scored 41 goals and 61 assists for 102 points in 66 games for the Red Deer Rebels.
In 293 NHL games split between the Chicago Blackhawks and Lightning, the 25-year-old has 90 goals and 207 points, which includes a 30-goal season and a 26-goal campaign this year.
