- Finland scored three unanswered in the second to flip a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 win in the Worlds semifinal
- Captain Aleksander Barkov tied it 49 seconds into the middle frame before Konsta Helenius and Aatu Räty buried Canada
- Read below for full details and video on Canada’s third straight year out of the gold medal game
Canada is out at the World Championship.
Finland scored three unanswered goals in the second period to beat Canada 4-2 in the semifinal at Swiss Life Arena in Zurich on Saturday, knocking the tournament favorites out and setting up a gold medal date with host Switzerland on Sunday:
Patrik Puistola opened the scoring for Finland with a snipe at 3:30 of the first period:
Canada answered fast. Robert Thomas tied it less than five minutes later, and Dylan Holloway buried the go-ahead before the period was out.
The Canadians took a 2-1 lead into the room and looked like the team that wanted it more.
Then the second period happened.
Aleksander Barkov, the Florida Panthers captain who missed the entire NHL regular season with an injury, slid a loose puck past Jet Greaves just 49 seconds into the middle frame to tie it 2-2.
Finland outshot Canada 10-3 in the period. Konsta Helenius broke loose for a breakaway goal to give the Finns the lead. Aatu Räty added the insurance with a slot snap to make it 4-2.
Catch the IIHF video highlights of the upset:
Justus Annunen stopped 28 shots for Finland, and Mikael Granlund chipped in two assists. Canada pulled Greaves and pushed late, but the comeback never arrived. Finland plays Switzerland for gold on Sunday at 2:20 p.m. ET, and Canada drops to the bronze game against Norway at 9:30 a.m. ET.
That makes three straight years Canada has missed the gold medal game at Worlds. The Canadians played the semifinal without Evan Bouchard, who was knocked out earlier in the tournament. The rest of the roster did not have an answer for a Finland side that locked in the moment it fell behind.
