Canadian men into world hockey semifinals, reclaim bragging rights from arch-rival U.S.
Jet Greaves made 34 saves, Macklin Celebrini scored his sixth goal and Canada blanked the United States 4-0 in quarterfinal action Thursday at the world hockey championship in Fribourg, Switzerland.
Dylan Holloway, Connor Brown and Sidney Crosby also scored for Canada.
Crosby's goal into an empty net was his first of the tournament, though he entered the quarterfinals tied for the tournament lead with nine assists.
Devin Cooley made 34 saves for the U.S., which entered the tournament as defending champion.
Canadian defenceman Evan Bouchard left the game after taking a hit to the head from U.S. defenceman Ryan Lindgren at 6:12 of the opening period.
Lindgren received a five-minute major for a hit to the head and a game misconduct.
Canada advances to world semifinals but loses Bouchard to injury
Bouchard appeared unconscious on the ice following the collision.
The 26-year-old Edmonton Oilers blueliner led all NHL defencemen in scoring last season with 95 points, including 21 goals and 72 assists.
Canada, which entered the knockout game with a perfect record after winning all seven of its round-robin games, remains on course to capture its 29th title at the worlds.
Canada finished the preliminary round atop Group B, defeating Czechia 3-2 while the U.S. squeezed into the playoffs after finishing fourth in Pool A with a 4-1 win over Austria.
It set up a rematch of the gold-medal game from this year's Milano-Cortina Olympics, which the U.S. won 2-1 in overtime. The teams also met in the final of the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off, with Canada winning 3-2 in overtime.
In Thursday's other last-eight clash, Finland thumped the Czech Republic 4-1 to book its spot in the last four. Norway take on Latvia and Sweden face hosts


