TAMPERE, Finland – Sakari Manninen scored and added two assists for host Finland to beat the United States 4-1 and keep a perfect record at the ice hockey world championship.
After Mikael Granlund gave Finland a 1-0 lead on a power play in the opening period, Austin Watson was given a major penalty early in the middle period for a high hit on Teemu Hartikainen.
Valtteri Filppula and Manninen used the following five-minute power play to increase the lead to 3-0 and Mikko Lehtonen added the fourth later in the frame.
Alex Galchenyuk scored the consolation goal for the Americans in the third period, AP reported.
Finland goaltender Jussi Olkinuora stopped 29 shots, 15 of them in the final period. Finland leads Group B in Tampere with nine points from three games. The US has five points in third.
Pierre-Luc Dubois scored twice to spark defending champion Canada to 5-1 over Slovakia for a third straight victory.
After the teams entered the middle period at 1-1, Dubois scored the eventual winner on a power play and added one more to double the advantage for his fourth goal of the tournament.
Adam Lowry, Morgan Geekie and Cole Sillinger, celebrating his 19th birthday, also netted for Canada to top Group A in Helsinki with nine points from three games. Slovakia has three points.
Canada goaltender Logan Thompson made 34 saves as they outshot Slovakia 44-35.
In another Group A game, Germany defeated France 3-2 for a second win, while Latvia beat Norway 3-2 to record its first win in Group B.
Elsewhere, The Nashville Predators have signed Iaroslav Askarov to a three-year entry level contract, two years after making him the sixth Russian-born goalie taken in the NHL draft first round at No. 11 overall.
The 19-year-old spent most of the 2021-22 season with the VHL´s Neva Saint Petersburg in his native country, posting a 5-2-2 record with a 2.57 goals-against average in nine games.
Askarov also appeared six times for SKA Saint Petersburg in the KHL with a.913 save percentage.
He was 5-4-0 with a shutout while posting a.951 save percentage in nine appearances at the previous season.
The 6-foot-3 right-catcher has recently represented Russia in the World Junior Championship, earning a silver medal in 2020.
He earned gold in the 2019 Under-18 Hlinka Gretzky Cup — making 35 saves in the final against Canada — and helped Russia win gold in the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.
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