The United States will play for bronze at this year’s IIHF World Hockey Championship after getting dumped in by Sweden 6-0 in their semifinal matchup.
The score wasn’t as lopsided as the actual gameplay (the U.S. outshot Sweden 41-20), but there might not have been an uglier moment for the Americans than this two-handed chop from star forward Johnny Gaudreau.
Gaudreau’s slash of Swedish defender Hampus Lindholm came after Gaudreau was on the receiving end of a hit – not to mention immediately before the Calgary Flames winger curled away to his own bench.
The score was 2-0 at the time of Gaudreau’s stick whip, and Patric Hornqvist would convert on some pretty Swedish passing to make it a three-goal game on the ensuing power play.
This was supposed to be a different year for Team USA, which has in recent years rather meh rosters to the worlds, oftentimes fleshed out with AHL/NCAA talent as the country’s star players turned down invitations to compete.
The 2018 edition managed to land big-name NHLers like Patrick Kane, and of course Gaudreau, and the team looked good in the preliminary round, edging Canada in a shootout to finish second in Group B.
The U.S. will now have to play for bronze, taking on Canada, which was upset by the Swiss in the other semifinal.
