Gabe Perreault scored twice as Team USA beat Latvia 7-2 in the quarterfinals for the world junior hockey championships Tuesday in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Team USA advances at world junior tournament, but Canada is upset
The Americans beat Latvia handily in the quarterfinals after Canada lost to Czechia.
January 3, 2024 at 2:33AM
Gophers freshman Oliver Moore and Maple Grove's Danny Nelson, who plays at Notre Dame, also scored for the U.S. as did Drew Fortescue, Rutger McGroarty and Will Smith.
Jacob Fowler had 23 saves for the Americans, who will face Finland in Thursday's semifinals. The other semi matches Sweden and Czechia.
Dans Locmelis, who plays for UMass-Amherst, scored both Latvian goals. His UMass teammate, goaltender Michael Hrabel, was the hero as Czechia upset Canada earlier in the day.
Hrabel made 28 saves and Jakub Stancl scored his second goal of the game with 11.7 seconds left in regulation to lift Czechia past Canada 3-2.
The Canadians rallied from a 2-0 deficit on goals from Jake Furlong and Matthew Wood before Stancl's shot from the left circle went off a defender's stick and slipped past goalie Mathis Rousseau.
Jere Lassila scored in overtime to lift Finland past Slovakia 4-3 in another quarterfinal, and Sweden got an overtime goal from Axel Sandin Pellikka to beat Switzerland 3-2.
The No. Gophers had a nine-game winning streak snapped last Saturday at Bemidji State and and will look to bounce back against a struggling Notre Dame team.
