The United States managed to reach the Final Four of the World Junior Ice Hockey Championships by easily defeating Latvia 7-2 in Gothenburg on Tuesday thanks to a very committed Lane Hutson.
The defenseman, a prospect for the Montreal Canadiens, spent 24 minutes on the ice and collected one assist. Of his teammates, only one exceeded the 20-minute mark. However, he wasn't perfect as he allowed the Latvians to score on a two-on-one run after penetrating a little too far into the opponent's territory.
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In Locmelis, Latvia scored both goals, but these were the only errors by another player drafted by the Habs: Jacob Fowler. The 19-year-old goalkeeper faced 23 shots.
Seamus Casey and Gabriel Perreault led the American attack with three points each. The United States scored three goals in the first and second periods, allowing the team to sustain the tournament's most devastating attack. They have now scored 36 goals in five games.
“There are a lot of things to like about this game,” head coach David Carle said after the game in comments shared on the U.S. team’s website. We’re looking forward to the next step and can’t wait for our next challenge.”
Hutson's teammates will challenge Finland in the semifinals, but in the words of striker Cutter Gauthier, the goal is the gold medal and the opponents who will face his team had better watch out.
“It doesn’t matter who we play against,” said Gauthier after his country’s victory. We have standards to ensure we win the gold medal.”
This is only the second time that Latvia has reached the quarterfinals, after the 2022 edition.