DORION’S DEUCE LEADS CANADA TO WIN

VANCOUVER, BC – Marc Dorion (Bourget, ON) made one of the nicest plays you’ll see in sledge hockey. And then he did it again.

Dorion scored two goals in leading Canada’s National Sledge Team to a 6-2 win over Japan in the final preliminary game for both teams at the 2009 Hockey Canada Cup on Thursday night.

Brad Bowden (Orton, ON) also scored twice and Greg Westlake (Oakville, ON) and Hervé Lord (St-Pamphile, QC) added singles for the Canadians, who wrapped up first place in the prelims with the win.

The teams traded goals in the first period – Japan opened the scoring at 5:49 when Kazuhiro Takahashi’s shot beat Benoit St-Amand before Greg Westlake (Oakville, ON) tied the game late in the frame.

There was a flurry of goals in a short span of the second period. First, Dorion broke a 1-1 tie with a great individual effort, when he split two Japanese defenders, got a partial breakaway and fired a shot top corner.

Seventeen seconds later, Japan tied the game on a goal by Daisuke Uehara. But just 32 ticks after that, Canada regained its one-goal lead when Brad Bowden (Orton, ON) finished a great play by Billy Bridges (Summerside, PEI).

In the third, Dorion scored on a powerplay to make it 4-2 Canada. Bowden and Lord scored quickly after that as Canada scored three goals in 51 seconds in the third.

St-Amand made 13 saves to record his second win of the tournament.

Canada will now face Germany in the semifinals on Saturday, with Japan taking on the United States. The winners will meet for gold on Sunday, with the losers playing for bronze.

Goals/Buts :
05:49 JPN Kazuhiro Takahashi (Daisuke Uehara)
14:18 CAN Greg Westlake (Adam Dixon, Jean Labonté) PP

Penalties/Pénalités :
08:20 JPN Mikio Annaka  (Interference/Obstruction)
10:33 CAN Graeme Murray (Interference/Obstruction)
12:42 JPN Noritaka Ito (Interference/Obstruction)

Goals/Buts :
05:14 CAN Marc Dorion PP
05:31 JPN Daisuke Uehara (Takayuki Endo, Kazuhiro Takahashi)
06:03 CAN Brad Bowden (Billy Bridges, Adam Dixon)

Penalties/Pénalités :
04:13 JPN Daisuke Uehara (Interference/Obstruction)
08:05 CAN Greg Westlake (Delay of Game/Arrêter le match)
09:45 CAN Jean Labonté (Interference/Obstruction)
10:03 JPN Mamoru Yoshikawa (T-boning/Charge en T)
10:48 JPN Satoru Sudo (Roughing/Rudesse)
13:01 CAN Todd Nicholson (Holding/Retenir)

Goals/Buts :
10:32 CAN Marc Dorion PP
10:42 CAN Brad Bowden (Billy Bridges, Adam Dixon)
11:23 CAN Hervé Lord

Penalties/Pénalités :
07:43 JPN Kazuhiro Takahashi (Holding/Retenir)
09:08 JPN Noritaka Ito (Holding/Retenir)
13:33 JPN Takayuki Endo (Interference/Obstruction)