2017-18 National Men's Team

CANADA MAKES IT THREE IN A ROW, BLANKS NORWAY

JESSICA GOWANS

HERNING, Denmark – Connor McDavid (Newmarket, Ont./Edmonton, NHL) had a hat trick, Bo Horvat (London, Ont./Vancouver, NHL) chipped in two goals of his own and Canada’s National Men’s Team shut out Norway 5-0 on Thursday for its third-straight win at the 2018 IIHF World Championship.

Curtis McElhinney (London, Ont./Toronto, NHL) got the start in net for Canada, making nine saves in 48 minutes of work before giving way to Darcy Kuemper (Saskatoon, Sask./Arizona, NHL), who made one stop the rest of the way.

With the win – its third in a row – Canada moves even with the U.S. atop Group B with 10 points apiece.

McDavid got Canada on the board early, finishing off an extended cycle in the Norwegian end by walking out of the corner to make it 1-0 just 83 seconds after the puck dropped.

Horvat got his first of the game with a shorthanded effort at 12:49, blocking a shot and going coast to coast before tucking a backhand five-hole on Norwegian goaltender Lars Haugen.

McDavid was on the board again late in the first. He took a pass from Jaden Schwartz (Wilcox, Sask./St. Louis, NHL), deked his way through three Norwegians and roofed it top corner as he was falling to the ice for the 3-0 lead.

His hat trick goal came midway through the second period; he tried a wraparound, corralled his own rebound and chipped a shot over Haugen for the lone goal of the middle frame.

Horvat got Canada’s final goal off another long cycle, finishing a give-and-go with Pierre-Luc Dubois (Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts, Que./Columbus, NHL) with a tip-in from in close.

The Canadians will look to continue their win streak when they take on Finland on Saturday (2:15 p.m. ET/11:15 a.m. PT).