Canada crushes Japan 11-0 to wrap up three country sledge hockey series
Source: The Canadian Press

ROCHESTER, N.Y. _ Canada's sledge hockey team wrapped up the Three Nation exhibition series with an 11-0 drubbing of Japan that offered more benefits than an impressive stat sheet. Bradley Bowden of Orton, Ont., scored three times while Billy Bridges of Summerside, P.E.I., added a goal and two assists to help the Canadians secure a 3-0 finish.

But what really impressed head coach Mike Mondin of Trail, B.C., was the attention to detail his players showed on the ice in areas such as cycling the puck. He feels that will really pay off down the road. “We really looked at those fine points of our gameplan,” said Mondin. “The players really responded to what we are asking from them and I thought that was the real difference in our game, and it really improved our team play. “It helps them understand the philosophy of how we're trying to play as a team, so we used that to try and hone those real fine points.”

Benoit St-Amand of St-Hubert, Que., made five saves in goal, while Dominic Larocque of Quebec City with two, Anthony Gale of Brampton, Ont., Kevin Rempel of Dundas, Ont., Derek Whitson of Chatham, Ont., Raymond Grassi of Windsor, Ont., and Adam Dixon of Midland, Ont., also scored for the Canadians. The latest victory followed an earlier 18-0 whipping of Japan 18-0 and a 2-0 victory over the United States. Japan stunned Canada 3-1 in the Paralympics semifinal in March, but revenge was already exacted in the first meeting.

“This game started off a little bit more challenging for sure, (Japan) they definitely didn't give up during the game at all,” said Bowden. “Our team was just really pumped up to play. “We were sitting at home just waiting for the season to start after Vancouver, and then a few new guys came along and a lot of us were just really enthusiastic to play and it showed.”

The Canadians now take a break and won't reconvene until January for a training camp ahead of late February's Four Nations Cup, where they will meet host Japan, the U.S. and Norway. “There's going to be something to play for and we're going to have to be ready,” said Mondin. “It will be real test, for sure.”

In early April, London, Ont., will host Hockey Canada's World Sledge Challenge with the same four teams. By the time all is said and done, the Canadians feel they will have set up a strong base for the new Paralympic cycle ending at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. “We've had six new players join the team, so we're really pleased with their progress,” said Mondin. “They've all shown remarkable improvement since their selection and we think projecting out four years, they're going to be real solid players.”

Penalties:
09:52 CAN 29 Graeme Murray (Interference)

Penalties:
06:54 CAN 21 Raymond Grassi (Charging)
10:11 CAN 20 Dominic Larocque (Teeing)
15:58 CAN 29 Graeme Murray (Holding)

Penalties:
06:18 CAN 12 Greg Westlake (Roughing)