Ritchie leads Canada to pre-tournament win over Sweden
Published
Calum Ritchie's goal at 16:24 of the third period snapped a 2-2 deadlock and lifted Canada to a 4-2 victory over Sweden in a pre-World Junior Championship exhibition game on Saturday night at TD Place.
Sweden grabbed a 2-1 second-period lead on goals from Felix Unger Sorum and Rasmus Bergqvist, but couldn't hold off the Canadians in the third period, who outshot the visitors 17-6, and 44-24 overall.
Luca Pinelli, Oliver Bonk and Easton Cowan also scored for Canada. Ritchie chipped in with two assists.
Canada went 0-for-3 on the power play, while Sweden was 0-for-2.
Canada beat Switzerland 7-1 on Thursday in its first pre-tournament game. Canada concludes its exhibition schedule with a game Monday against Czechia. Sweden will play Germany on Monday in Belleville, Ont.
The World Junior Championship gets underway on Boxing Day with four games, including Canada facing Finland at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa.