WEST VALLEY CITY -- Turnabout -- or revenge -- served as the top storyline in Saturday's medal-round matches of the 2000 World Ice Sledge Championships at the E Center.
Canada avenged its second-place finish at the 1998 Paralympics in Nagano, Japan, by downing defending gold-medalist Norway 2-1 in overtime in Saturday night's championship game.And Estonia, which had gone through the previous five days of preliminary-round play without a victory, turned the tables on the United States by shutting out the Americans 4-0 in Saturday's early afternoon contest.
The win gave Estonia fifth place, dropping Team USA to sixth in the six-team tournament. The Americans had won only one game in the previous five days, edging Estonia earlier in the week.
About the only thing true to form was Sweden's 5-1 victory over Japan for the bronze. Sweden not only won the '98 Paralympic bronze medal but also was in third place in the standings after this week's preliminary play.
CANADA 2, NORWAY 1 (OT): After a scoreless first period, Norway drew first blood on a goal by Helge Bjoernstad nearly five minutes into the second. But Canada evened the score at the 36:44 mark on a power-play score by Pat Griffin, sending the game into overtime after 45 minutes of regulation time.
And just 3:29 into the OT, Shawn Matheson took a Rob Lagace assist for the game- and tournament-winning score.
Canada outshot Norway 21-8, and Canadian goaltender Pierre Pichette -- who had three shutouts in five of the preliminary games -- earned the victory in the net.
SWEDEN 5, JAPAN 1: In matching its bronze-medal effort in the 1998 Paralympics, Sweden scored in each of the three periods in downing Japan.
Jens Kask scored a pair of goals in the second period, while Marcus Holm had a goal and an assist and Bengt-gosta Johansson two assists. Holm ended the six-day tournament as the top goal scorer, with Holm tied for third-place honors. Atsuya Yagushi scored Japan's sole goal in the final minute of the match, breaking up the Swedish bid for a shutout.
ESTONIA 4, USA 0: After a scoreless first period, Estonia scored its first goal 19 seconds into the second period and its second six minutes later in posting an early and insurmountable lead for fifth-place honors.
The Estonians added a pair of goals in the third, as Maksim Vedernikov scored two goals and Juri Tammleht added a goal and two assists.