WJC History: 1991 - Saskatoon

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Canada: 5 W - 1 T - 1 L, Gold Medal

After getting just a taste of Eric Lindros the year before, the world saw his greatness unleashed at the 1991 World Junior Championships in Saskatoon.

Lindros did not lead the tournament in scoring, finishing second to American Doug Weight, and it was the USSR's Pavel Bure on top with 12 goals. But it was Lindros's show, as he scored 17 points to spearhead Canada's gold medal victory.

Lindros was named the tournament's top forward and his line-mate, Mike Craig, joined him on the all-star team. With 28 total points, they were Canada's dynamic duo.

Canada featured another brilliant pair in goal, where Trevor Kidd and Felix Potvin held down the fort.

Other than Patrice Brisebois, the defence was a largely anonymous group. But that changed on the tournament's final day when John Slaney became a household name.

It was almost a repeat of 1990, with the Soviets leading Canada by a two points heading into the final game. This time, however, Canada would not need any outside help to win. This time, they would have to beat the USSR themselves in order to create a two-way tie for first place. Canada would win gold based on its head-to-head win over the Russians - but they had to win the game first.

Like Canada, the Soviets had another great team in 1991. Along with Bure, Sergei Berezin and Vyacheslav Kozlov up front, they were stacked on the blue-line with the likes of Dimitri Yushkevich, Darius Kasparaitis, Sandis Ozolinch and Boris Mirinov.

All they needed was a tie to win gold, and they looked like they might get it as the teams were deadlocked at 2-2 late in the final game. But, with time running out, Slaney became the improbable hero when he found the back of the net with a long slapper for a 3-2 victory and another gold medal for Canada. 

Team Canada Roster (GP - G - A - Pts)

Eric Lindros (7 - 6 - 11 - 17)
Mike Craig (7 - 6 - 5 - 11)
Patrice Brisebois (7 - 1 - 6 - 7)
Kent Manderville (7 - 1 - 6 - 7)
Greg Johnson (7 - 4 - 2 - 6)
Mike Sillinger (7 - 4 - 2 - 6)
Pierre Sevigny (7 - 4 - 2 - 6)
Pat Falloon (7 - 3 - 3 - 6)
Steven Rice (7 - 4 - 1 - 5)
Scott Thornton (7 - 3 - 1 - 4)
Kris Draper (7 - 1 - 3 - 4)
Jason Marshall (7 - 0 - 4 - 4)
Chris Snell (7 - 0 - 4 - 4)
Dale Craigwell (6 - 1 - 2 - 3)
John Slaney (7 - 1 - 2 - 3)
Martin Lapointe (6 - 0 - 3 - 3)
Karl Dykhuis (7 - 0 - 3 - 3)
David Harlock (7 - 0 - 2 - 2)
Brad May (3 - 1 - 0 - 1)
Scott Niedermayer (3 - 0 - 0 - 0) 

Team Canada Goaltending (W-L-T - GAA - SO)

Trevor Kidd (4-1-1 - 2.65 - 1)
Felix Potvin (1-0-0 - 2.25 - 0)