U.S. Men's National Team Edged by Finland, 3-2

U.S. Men's National Team Edged by Finland, 3-2,
at 2010 IIHF World Men's Championship

Team USA to Play in Relegation Round Beginning Saturday

COLOGNE, Germany - The U.S. Men's National Team was edged by Finland, 3-2, here tonight in both teams' final preliminary-round game at the 2010 International Ice Hockey Federation World Men's Championship in Cologne, Gelsenkirchen and Mannheim, Germany. With a 0-0-2-1 record (W-OTW-OTL-L), the U.S. finished last in its group and will play in the tournament's relegation round.

"I liked our effort tonight," said U.S. Head Coach Scott Gordon. "We worked hard. It's been a challenge for us to score and that was the case again tonight. Give Finland credit though. They blocked a lot of shots and really made it difficult for us to get to the net."

Team USA grabbed a 1-0 lead just 3:30 into the game. After the U.S. moved the puck through the neutral zone, David Moss (Livonia, Mich./Calgary Flames/Univ. of Michigan) collected the puck inside the offensive blue line, skated down the right-wing boards and had his centering pass deflect off the stick of a diving Finnish defenseman past Petri Vehanen low to the far side. U.S. netminder Scott Clemmensen (Des Moines, Iowa/Florida Panthers/Boston College) turned aside all 14 shots he faced in the opening frame.

In the second period, Leo Komarov knotted the score with a slap shot from just inside the blue line that beat Clemmensen over the glove.

Finland netted a pair of goals in the final frame to take a 3-1 lead. While on the power play, Jarkko Immonen gave Finland a 2-1 advantage 18 seconds into the period after deflecting a shot from the blue line past Clemmensen on the blocker side. Sami Kapanen extended Finland's lead with 2:02 remaining with a shot from the left circle.

Team USA did not quit, however. While on the penalty kill, T.J. Oshie (Warroad, Minn./St. Louis Blues/Univ. of North Dakota) closed the gap to 3-2 with 17 seconds remaining in the game. Keith Yandle (Boston, Mass./Phoenix Coyotes) fired a pass from his defensive zone to Oshie at the offensive blue line, where he fended off a Finnish defenseman before wristing a shot from the left faceoff dot off the far post and into the net. Team USA gained control of the puck in the Finnish end off the ensuing faceoff, but was not able to even the game.

Clemmensen, who was named the U.S. Player of the Game, turned aside 40 shots in the game.

Team USA begins relegation-round play on Saturday (May 15) against Group A's last-place team at 4:15 p.m. (10:15 a.m. ET).

NOTES: The U.S. was 0-for-1 on the power play, while Finland was 1-for-3 ... T.J. Oshie's goal was Team USA's second special teams tally and first shorthanded marker of the tournament ... The IIHF World Men's Championship relegation round features each group's last-place team. Each team will play three round-robin games, with the bottom two teams relegated to Division I in next year's World Championship ... For Team USA's roster, click here ... Coverage of the 2010 U.S. Men's National Team can be found here ... All Team USA games, as well as additional international games, will air on Universal Sports and at UniversalSports.com. Visit UniversalSports.com for the full schedule ... All teams in the 2010 IIHF World Men's Championship may begin the tournament with 20 skaters and three goaltenders, and can add two players after the first three games ... Scott Gordon, head coach of the NHL's New York Islanders, is the head coach of the 2010 U.S. Men's National Team, with Todd Richards, head coach of the NHL's Minnesota Wild, Joe Sacco, head coach of the NHL's Colorado Avalanche, and Ron Rolston, one of two head coaches at USA Hockey's National Team Development Program, serving as assistant coaches ... The 2010 U.S. Men’s National Team is under the direction of Brian Burke, general manager; David Poile, associate general manager; and Jim Johannson, assistant executive director for hockey operations at USA Hockey. The U.S. Men's National Team Advisory Group, which also includes NHL front-office personnel Paul Holmgren (Philadelphia Flyers), Dean Lombardi (Los Angeles Kings), Ray Shero (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Don Waddell (Atlanta Thrashers), is charged with leading the selection of players for the U.S. Men's National Team ... USA Hockey's international council, chaired by Tony Rossi, vice president of USA Hockey, has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. national teams.

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

USA 1 - 0 - 1 - 2
FIN 0 - 1 - 2 - 3

First Period - Scoring: 1, USA, Moss (Johnson, Kreider), 3:30. Penalties: FIN, Jaakola (holding), 18:05.

Second Period - Scoring: 2, FIN, Komarov (Immonen, Puistola), 15:52. Penalties: USA, Hanson (cross-checking), 4:53; USA, Hillen (slashing), 18:42.

Third Period - Scoring: 3, FIN, Immonen (Nummelin, Maenpaa), :18 (pp); 4, FIN, Kapanen (Nummelin, Aaltonen), 17:58; 5, USA, Oshie (Yandle), 19:43 (sh). Penalties: USA, Galiardi (slashing), 18:42.

Shots by Period 1 2 3 Total
USA 8 6 8 22
FIN 14 17 12 43

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 Total
USA, Clemmensen, 59:21 14-14 17-16 12-10 43-40
FIN, Vehanen, 60:00 8-7 6-6 8-7 22-20

Power Play: USA 0-1; FIN 1-3
Penalties: USA 3-6; FIN 1-2
Officials: Referees-Milan Minar (CZE), Vladimir Sindler (CZE); Linesmen-Frantisek Kalivoda (CZE), Peter Sabelstrom (SWE)
Attendance: 17,633

Team USA 2010 IIHF World Men's Championship Schedule & Results
May 7-23 • Cologne, Gelsenkirchen & Mannheim, Germany

Date Opponent Location Time (Local/EDT) / Results

Tues., May 4 France (ex.) Amiens, France W, 3-1
Fri., May 7 Germany Gelsenkirchen L, 1-2 (OT)
Mon., May 10 Denmark Cologne L, 1-2 (OT)
Wed., May 12 Finland Cologne L, 2-3
Sat., May 15 4A* Cologne 4:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.
Sun., May 16 4C* Cologne 12:15 p.m./6:15 a.m.
Tues., May 18 Italy* Cologne 12:15 p.m./6:15 a.m.
*Relegation Round

Arena Locations: LANXESS Arena (Cologne); VELTINS-Arena (Gelsenkirchen); SAP Arena (Mannheim)