Canada’s defeat leaves Swiss ahead in Spengler Cup
Canada Selects have received a blow to their chances of winning this year's ice-hockey Spengler Cup, following their defeat by Germany on Thursday. The result is good news for the Swiss side, Davos, which remains at the top of the table.
After an easy victory against Finland’s Jokerit Helsinki on Wednesday, Canada met their match in Germany’s Kölner Haie. At the end of extra time, the teams were drawn 2-2, enabling Germany to snatch victory in a penalty shoot-out.
The result means Germany are back in with a chance of qualifying for Sunday’s final.
Canada and Davos are now preparing for their face-off on Friday. Ironically, both teams are depending on Swiss talent to take them through to the finals.
The Canadian side includes nine players from Switzerland’s championship league. Among them is Chris Bélanger from Ajoie. He told swissinfo he was very proud to be a part of the Selects team.
“To play for the Canadian National team is probably the best achievement that I’ve ever had in the game of hockey.
“Being a good professional means you can adapt to certain situations. Twenty-two guys come together with one goal – to win the Spengler Cup, and if you’re a professional, you learn how to play with other guys fairly quickly.”
Apart from Bélanger, the Swiss on the Selects’ team include: Craig Ferguson, Jean-Yves Roy and Greg Parks from Fribourg, Daniel Marois (Ambri), Christian Dubé (Lugano), Shawn Heaphy (Ge-Servette), Stéphane Julien (Sierre) and Serge Poudrier (Lausanne).
In the day’s other match, Sparta Prag beat Jokerit Helsinki 2-0.
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