Canada 3, Sweden 2, 2OT
One Fleury-ous finish
To game summary
By DAVE FULLER -- Toronto Sun
PHILADELPHIA -- They say it's never over 'til it's over, but last night it wasn't over even then.
In a game that took nearly five periods to complete, Theoren Fleury didn't realize until 30 minutes after Canada's 3-2 victory against Sweden that he had scored the game-winning goal.
That was the kind of night it was at the CoreStates Center where for two periods Canada appeared to be in control of this World Cup of Hockey semi-final game, building a 2-0 lead.
But as fans crammed in living rooms and bars across Canada prepared to celebrate, the never-say-die Swedes suddenly struck twice to force overtime.
Goals by Tommy Albelin and Michael Nylander brought Sweden even, after Eric Lindros and Scott Niedermayer, with the most amazing goal of the tournament, had scored for Canada.
But Fleury saved the night for Canadians, collecting a loose puck off the stick of Paul Coffey and wristing a shot toward the net at the same time Brendan Shanahan arrived in front of Tommy Salo.
The goal -- at 19:47 of the second overtime -- originally was credited to Shanahan. But after watching replay after replay, off-ice officials finally awarded the goal to Fleury.
"I didn't even realize there was so little time left (in the period) until we got back in the dressing room," said the Calgary Flames' Little Big Man.
"One hundred percent of the shots you don't take don't go in the net, so I made sure I shot it. It's probably one of the greatest moments I've ever had in my career."
Sweden's Johan Garpenlov had hit the crossbar behind Curtis Joseph just seconds earlier.
The victory catapulted Canada into a best-of-three tournament final against the winner of tonight's USA-Russia game in Ottawa.
The final opens here Tuesday night, with Games 2 and 3 (if necessary) slated for Montreal.
A trio of Canadian players seeking vindication in this tournament -- Joseph, Lindros and Niedermayer -- had a huge hand in this face-saving victory in front of 17,227 fans.
Joseph, who never would have been here if Mike Keenan had returned as Canada's coach, was brilliant, particularly during the first 40 minutes, when Sweden outshot Canada 26-14.
But it was his game-saving stop on Niklas Sundstrom with 4:06 left in the first overtime period that hurt Sweden the most.
"What's the date today?" Joseph laughed. "It's pretty early to be playing games of that magnitude.
"It was kind of like a chess game. But as the game went on we seemed to get stronger."
Lindros, under the gun for his lack of productivity, bagged Canada's first goal. Niedermayer, handcuffed by the New Jersey Devils' vaunted trap defence, scored a highlight-reel goal, rushing nearly end to end to give Canada a 2-0 lead.
Summary
First period
1. Canada, Lindros 1 (Shanahan, Sakic) 17:59
Penalties -- Juhlin Swe (elbowing) 7:12, Graves Cda (elbowing) 9:34, Rohlin Swe (high-sticking) 13:49.
Second period
2. Canada, Niedermayer 1 14:38
Penalties -- Desjardins Cda (holding) 9:39.
Third period
3. Sweden, Albelin 1 (C. Johansson, Sundstrom) 5:47
4. Sweden, Nylander 2 (Sundin, C. Johansson) 13:33
Penalties -- Fleury Cda, C. Johansson Swe (roughing) 14:23, Foote Cda, Forsberg Swe (roughing) 15:51.
First Overtime
No scoring.
Penalties -- None.
Second Overtime
5. Canada, Fleury 3 (Coffey) 19:47
Penalties -- Lemieux Cda, C. Johansson Swe (roughing) 9:33.
Shots on goal by
Canada 5 9 9 8 12--43
Sweden 14 12 7 7 3--43
Power plays (goals-chances) -- Canada: 0-2; Sweden: 0-2.
Goal -- Canada: Joseph (W,4-0); Sweden: Salo (L,1-1).
Referee -- Mark Faucette; Linesmen -- Ray Scapinello, San Schachte.
Attendance -- 17,227.
