Canada comes back to beat Latvia to punch ticket to World Championship final
Published
Adam Fantilli's third period goal was the difference as Canada defeated Latvia 4-2 in the semifinal to punch their ticket to the men's IIHF World Championship final.
After trailing for the majority of the game, Jack Quinn roofed his bad-angle shot past Latvian goalie Arturs Silovs 45 seconds in the third period to tie the game. Then, Fantilli split the Latvian defence midway through the frame and wired a shot home to give Canada a lead they would never relinquish.
Fantilli is a top prospect in this June's NHL draft, the 2023 Hobey Baker Award winner, and has a goal and two assists in the tournament.
Sammy Blais and Scott Laughton also recorded goals for Canada.
Montreal Canadiens goaltender Samuel Montembeault kept Canada in the game by stopping 20 of 22 Latvian shots.
Latvia got goals from Dans Locmelis and Rudolfs Balcers.
Silovs takes the loss after stopping 33 of 36 shots.
Canada will face Germany in Sunday's gold medal game.