The Canada – Russia challenge, the four-game contest between the two nations’ U20 sides to mark the 40th anniversary of the famous 1972 Canada – USSR Summit Series, has finished with a 4-2 win for the host nation in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Mikhail Varnakov’s team had led twice during the game, thanks to goals from Andrei Sigarev and Albert Yarullin, but failed to withstand a spirited Canadian comeback.
The regulation time victory meant the Canadians has tied the series (Game 1 was a 3-2 victory for Canada, before Russia bounced back to win the next two 6-3 and 6-5) so the teams played a sudden death overtime to decide the winner. Center Ryan Strome struck the golden goal with a smart wrist-shot after 3 minutes and 20 seconds, to bring a highly entertaining series to an end.
