by Alan Adams

HALIFAX – Derek Roy scored two of his three goals in a span of 2:42 late in the second period to turn a close 3-2 game into a 5-2 runaway to help Canada to an 8-2 quarterfinal victory over Norway on Wednesday and set up a semi-final date with Sweden at the 2008 IIHF World Championship.

The Canadians and pesky Norwegians were knotted at 2-2 when the defending world champions sealed their seventh straight win on home soil by scoring three unanswered goals in the second period.

Johathan Toews put a quick wrist shot past goalie Pal Grotnes at 9:57 of the second, beating him high to the glove hand while Canada was on the power play.

Roy made it 4-2 at 14:08 on another power play, beating Grotnes from close in, and the Buffalo Sabres forward capped a great effort at 16:50 with another close-in shot that beat Grotnes, who again was Norway's best player. Grotnes caught Canada's attention six days earlier in a 2-1 loss to the home side, a game in which he made 50 saves.

Roy completed the hat trick at 11:40 of the third period, swinging around in front of the net and tucking a wrist shot under the crossbar for his fifth goal of the tournament.

Dany Heatley scored his 10th goal in seven game 37 seconds after the game’s opening face-off, giving Canadian fans visions of a runaway victory, much like the 10-1 win over Germany on Saturday.

But the Norwegians play a gritty style of hockey, and gave the Canadians all they could handle for the first half of the game, pulling even at 2-2 on a Mathis Olimb goal 5:32 into the second period.

But the Canadians kept coming in waves and wore down their opponents, controlling the play for much, if not all, of the second half of the game.

Rick Nash, with a pair of goals, and Ryan Getzlaf also scored for the Canadians, who now head to Quebec City for Friday's semi-final against the Swedes, who beat the Czech Republic 3-2 in overtime.

The Getzlaf-Nash-Heatley line combined for seven points and now has 39 points in seven games.

Cam Ward made 22 saves in goal for Canada.

The Canadians take a 16-game winning streak into Friday’s game and are looking to become the first host country to win gold on home soil since the Soviet Union in 1986.

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2

3

Final

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3

3

8

1

1

0

2

Goals/Buts :
0.37 - Canada 15. HEATLEY, Dany
7.51 - Norway 21. ASK, Morten (23. TRYGG, Mats, 20. BASTIANSEN, Anders) - PP
11.02 - Canada 51. GETZLAF, Ryan (26. ST. LOUIS, Martin, 15. HEATLEY, Dany) - PP

Penalties/Pénalités :
1.16 - 2 min Norway 54. MYRVOLD, Anders - Hooking
6.46 - 2 min Canada 8. BURNS, Brent - Roughing
7.05 - 2 min Canada 19. DOAN, Shane - Hooking
9.24 - 2 min Norway 7. JAKOBSEN, Tommy - Hooking
9.59 - 2 min Norway 24. ODEGAARD, Henrik - Hooking
13.23 - 2 min Canada 14. KUNITZ, Chris - High Sticking
13.23 - 2 min Norway 23. TRYGG, Mats - Boarding
16.05 - 2 min Canada 16. TOEWS, Jonathan - Hooking
17.30 - 2 min Canada 4. BOUWMEESTER, Jay - Cross-Checking

Goals/Buts :
25.32 - Norway 46. OLIMB, Mathis (10. SPETS, Lars Erik, 20. BASTIANSEN, Anders)
29.57 - Canada 16. TOEWS, Jonathan (22. KEITH, Duncan, 9. ROY, Derek) - PP
34.08 - Canada 9. ROY, Derek (16. TOEWS, Jonathan, 52. GREEN, Mike) - PP
36.50 - Canada 9. ROY, Derek (16. TOEWS, Jonathan, 19. DOAN, Shane)

Penalties/Pénalités :
26.53 - 2 min Norway 21. ASK, Morten - Hooking
27.58 - 2 min Norway 6. HOLOS, Jonas - High Sticking
33.05 - 2 min Norway 20. BASTIANSEN, Anders - High Sticking
37.12 - 2 min Canada 25. CHIMERA, Jason - Hooking
38.10 - 2 min Canada 8. BURNS, Brent - Hooking
38.10 - 2 min Canada 8. BURNS, Brent - Roughing
38.10 - 2 min Norway 19. SKRODER, Per-Age - Roughing

Goals/Buts :
44.10 - Canada 61. NASH, Rick (52. GREEN, Mike, 15. HEATLEY, Dany) - PP
50.44 - Canada 61. NASH, Rick (51. GETZLAF, Ryan)
51.40 - Canada 9. ROY, Derek

Penalties/Pénalités :
43.11 - 2 min Norway 54. MYRVOLD, Anders - Slashing
45.53 - 2 min Canada 22. KEITH, Duncan - High Sticking
52.25 - 2 min Norway 8. HANSEN, Mads - Interference
57.13 - 2 min Norway 27. FROSHAUG, Mats - Holding the Stick

CANADA LOOKS TO CONTINUE OFFENSIVE ROLL AGAINST NORWEGIANS

by Alan Adams

Pal Grotnes will soon find out that lightning does strike twice.

Grotnes is the five-foot-seven, 165-pound carpenter whose other job is to be Norway’s starting goaltender at the 2008 IIHF World Championship.

Canada plays Norway on Wednesday (LIVE on TSN, 3:20 p.m. ET/12:20 p.m. PT) in a quarterfinal game, a rematch of last week’s qualifying round game in which Grotnes made 50 saves and kept the Norwegians close in what ended up as a 2-1 Canadian win.

Since then, the defending world champions have scored 21 goals in three games, including a 6-3 victory over Finland that clinched top spot in Group F and extended Canada's winning streak at the tournament to six games.

Canada also takes a 15-game unbeaten streak into Norway's first quarterfinal appearance, and the Canadians can sniff gold and are getting better by the game.

"I think that's the confidence that we have right now," said head coach Ken Hitchcock after the win over Finland. "We know if we play the right way we can beat anybody."

What has changed since the Norway game is that the Canadians are getting offensive contributions from a lot of players.

Shane Doan and Patrick Sharp produced key short-handed goals in the win over Finland.

It was Eric Staal, with four goals and five points, and a five-assist effort by Martin St. Louis that jump-started Canada to a 10-1 triumph over Germany.

And the big line – literally and figuratively – of Ryan Getzlaf, Dany Heatley and Rick Nash look unstoppable. They had eight points against Finland, with Heatley netting his tournament-leading eighth and ninth goals, and now have 32 points in six games.

Sharp says you could see the confidence in the entire team when they took to the ice against Finland in what was their biggest game of the tournament so far.

"We're getting better and better. I think the big win against Germany (10-1) calmed guys down and now we're playing Team Canada hockey," said Sharp.

By beating the Finns, the Canadians avoided playing a young, fast United States team. Canada needed a goal from Heatley in the final minute to squeak out a 5-4 win over the U.S. in the preliminary round.

Now the Finns play the Americans and given the bitterness that flowed from a 3-2 Finland victory over the United States in earlier action, emotions will be running high.

Canada is on the verge of heading to the medal round and the Norwegians will have all that they can handle.

"Canadians expect our teams to win against everybody. With this team, if we play the game we can play, we're capable of beating everybody," Doan said after the win over Finland.