CANADA INTO GOLD MEDAL GAME AFTER SHUTOUT WIN OVER HOSTS

ASAHIKAWA, Japan – Canada’s National Sledge Team is into the gold medal game at the Japan Paralympic 2008 Ice Sledge Hockey International Match after a 2-0 win over the host Japanese on Thursday.

Player of the Game Hervé Lord (St-Pamphile, QC) and Billy Bridges (Summerside, PE) scored third period goals for the Canadians, who got a 14-save-shutout performance from goaltender Drew Rigden (Kincardine, ON) in his first-ever appearance for the national team.

After a penalty-filled opening 40 minutes – Canada had four powerplays, Japan had seven – it was not surprising that special teams were responsible for the game’s opening goal.

With Bridges off for elbowing early in the third period, Lord took a pass from Raymond Grassi (Windsor, ON) and beat Japanese goaltender Shinobu Fukushima with just 11 seconds left in the Japanese man advantage.

Bridges added the insurance just past the 11-minute mark of the period, scoring his third goal of the tournament and giving him a team-leading eight points in three games.

Rigden made the most of his first start for Canada, making six saves in each of the first and third periods on the way to the shutout, quieting the pro-Japanese crowd of 250 at Taisetsu Arena.

With the win, Canada moves into Saturday’s gold medal game against Norway (3:00 a.m. ET), who clinched their spot in the final by coming back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the USA 3-2 in overtime earlier on Thursday.

Canada had the upper hand in their round-robin meeting, scoring a 5-3 win on Tuesday.

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Goals/Buts :
NO SCORING

Penalties/Pénalités :
CAN – Greg Westlake (Boarding) 0:20
JPN – Satoru Sudo (Interference) 4:13
JPN – Naohiko Ishida (Boarding) 4:53
CAN – Billy Bridges (High Sticking) 5:22
JPN – Daisuke Uehara (Holding) 5:58
CAN – Graeme Murray (Double Roughing) 12:37
JPN – Naohiko Ishida (10-Minute Misconduct) 12:37

Goals/Buts :
NO SCORING

Penalties/Pénalités :
CAN – Bench (Too Many Men) 4:01
JPN – Noritaka Ito (Boarding) 9:46
CAN – Adam Dixon (Slashing) 10:18
CAN – Graeme Murray (Hooking) 13:25

Goals/Buts :
CAN – Hervé Lord (Raymond Grassi) 4:01 SH
CAN – Billy Bridges (Greg Westlake, Mark Noot) 11:08

Penalties/Pénalités :
CAN – Billy Bridges (Elbowing) 2:12