Nicklas Backstrom and Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored shootout goals and goalie Hank Lundqvist stopped all four shots he faced, giving Sweden its first IIHF world Championships gold medal since 2013.
It also marked the first time in four gold-medal games between the two hockey factories that Sweden beat Canada (having lost in the finals of 1997, 2003, and 2004)
Canada, trying to win a third straight gold, has to settle for silver.
The only other World Championship gold-medal game to go to a shootout was in 1994, when Canada beat Finland.
It was an end to end affair that saw Lundqvist and Calvin Pickard take turns making save on point blank chances.
Nathan MacKinnon, Brayden Point, Ryan O'Reilly, and Mitch Marner all missed on their h shootout attempts. O'Reilly drilled a puck of the post on his shootout shot.
Sweden scored their only regulation goal while playing short-handed.
Ryan O'Reilly scored Canada's only goal on the power play with three minutes remaining in regulation.
***
Anaheim Ducks head coach Randy Carlyle had bad news to report on Sunday. Ducks forwards Patrick Eaves and Rickard Rakell did not travel with the Ducks to Nashville. Both players will not be playing in Game 6 on Monday night.
Nashville leads the Western Conference Final 3 games to 2.
Rakell has 13 points in 15 games during the 2017 playoffs. Rakell sat out Saturday night with a lower-body injury that he suffered during pregame warm-ups.
Eaves hasn’t played since Game 3 of the second round.
John Gibson's availability for Game 6 is up in the air.
Gibson left Game 5 after suffering a first period lower-body injury. Gibson didn’t return to Game 5.
Join the Discussion:
»