Declan Farmer got the late equalizer and the overtime winner as the U.S. rallied to stun Canada with a 2-1 Para ice hockey gold medal victory on Sunday.


The 20-year-old Tampa Bay native, who is a bilateral amputee, cruised into the slot and beat heroic Canadian netminder Dominic Larocque high to the stick side
at 3:30 of overtime. That zinger gave the U.S. its third straight gold medal in
Para ice hockey and fourth all-time (2002). Farmer becomes the all-time leading
goal-scorer (14) at the Paralympics.

"It was crazy," said Farmer. "There are a lot of emotions now. It was so close.
[Canada] had so many chances this game, but [goalie] Steve [Cash] held us in there. The other guys did a great job of crashing the net and I was able to find a loose puck. It was awesome."

The sport, traditionally known as "sledge hockey" in Canada, "sled hockey" in the United States and "sledge ice hockey" at the Paralympic Winter Games, was officially renamed "Para ice hockey" in 2016. Sunday marked the first Canada-U.S. gold medal game in Paralympic history, and this battle on Korean ice deserved the title of a classic.

In front of 6,096 fans, the U.S. outshot Canada 16-12 in a physical, fast-paced
affair. It was an exciting conclusion to hockey at the Gangneung Hockey Centre.
Last month, the 2018 Olympic hockey venue also saw the Olympic Athletes from Russia edging Germany 4-3 in overtime in the men's final and the U.S. topping Canada 3-2 in a shootout in the women's final.

As in women's hockey, the fiercest rivalry in this sport is currently between the North American neighbours although they for the first time met in a Paralympic final. At this eight-team Paralympic tournament, Canada outscored its opponents 42-0 through the opening round and the semi-finals. The Americans
had a 38-1 goal difference over that span.

Canada, which led 1-0 with just 38 seconds to go, fell heartbreakingly short in
its bid for its first Para ice hockey gold since 2006.

"I am proud of the team," said veteran Canadian captain Greg Westlake. "It is hard to find what to take away from this at the moment. It stings right now. I believe there are gold medallists in our room, but they just do not know it just yet. I believe we will do it in the future."

Also on Sunday, host Korea celebrated its first Para ice hockey medal with a 1-0 bronze medal win over Italy. Dong Shin Jang scored his team-leading third goal with 3:18 left. This was the first medal-game appearance for both nations.


Para ice hockey, which debuted at the Paralympics in Lillehammer 1994, is based
on the IIHF Rule Book. It sees players with lower-body disabilities competing on metal sleds with blades and using two sticks to propel themselves and handle
the puck. Periods are 15 minutes long. The power and speed of the players is an
amazing spectacle.

In a high-tempo first period, Billy Bridges drew first blood at 12:06. The Canadian national team's all-time leading scorer overpowered U.S. goalie Steve Cash with a shot from the slot. Cash got a piece of it but couldn't prevent it from trickling in. It was Bridges' sixth of these Olympics.

Early in the second, the Canadians thought they might have taken a two-goal lead when Dominic Cozzolino, cutting toward the net, attempted a shot and two American defenders slid into their goalie, obscuring the puck. However, the officials reviewed the play and there was no goal.

In the third period, the Americans got an early power play with Bridges high-sticking Nikko Landeros, and they called their timeout to strategize. Farmer got the best chance alone in front of the Canadian net, but the puck trickled off his stick. Then Cash came up big with a blocker save on Greg Westlake from the slot with under six minutes remaining in regulation.

As the clock ticked down, the physicality increased. With their goalie pulled for the extra attacker, the Americans tied it up in a stunning late sequence. Rob Armstrong, Canada's top-scoring defenceman, got loose on the right side and
had an empty net, but he fired it off the post. The U.S. came right back down and their two deadliest forwards went to work. Brody Roybal put the puck off Bridges' sled and Farmer picked it up, coolly delaying before roofing it at 14:22.

The Americans were saved. Canada had defeated the U.S. in the finals of the last two World Para Ice Hockey Championships hosted by Korea (2013, 2017), but that string of good fortune ran out here.

These two teams are always in the mix. In Turin 2006, the Canadians beat Norway
3-0 in the final, while the Americans took bronze. In 2010 in Vancouver, the Americans blanked Japan 2-0 for gold, while host Canada lost to Norway for bronze. And in Sochi in 2014, the U.S. edged host Russia 1-0, while Canada took
third place by beating Norway.

The 2018 Stars and Stripes victory also stands as a tribute to former U.S. Para
ice hockey coach Jeff Sauer, who passed away in 2017 at age 73. The decorated University of Wisconsin legend, who also served on the IIHF Disciplinary Committee, guided the Americans to that Sochi gold. Farmer said Sauer "is watching over us, and we love him, and we appreciate everything he had done for
us."

There were many interesting side stories at these Paralympics. Italy's fourth-place finish was its best ever. Norway iced a female player with spina bifida in 24-year-old Lena Schroder, technically making it a mixed tournament. Korea's Kwang Hyouk Choi originally hailed from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (commonly known as North Korea), where his foot was amputated
in 2000 after he fell off a moving train. At the PyeongChang2018 Paralympics he
represented his new country, the Republic of Korea (South Korea) that got a bronze medal on home ice after beating Italy for first place. The North Koreans
had an official delegation of athletes at the Paralympics too, another first. It's all a tribute to these resilient athletes, who refuse to be defined by their disabilities.

Para ice hockey is run by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) with coordination from the World Para Ice Hockey Technical Committee. On 7 December 2014, the IIHF signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the IPC at the 127th IOC Session in Monaco, setting up a ground-breaking partnership to promote and coordinate the sport.

At the time, IIHF President René Fasel stated: "We are happy to be able to help raise the profile of sledge hockey going into the next Paralympic cycle. The dedication and effort that these athletes demonstrated in a hard-fought tournament in Sochi showed that this is a sport worthy of the Paralympic Games." And happily, after another great tournament in Korea, the tradition will continue in Beijing in 2022.

2018 Final Ranking

1. United States
2. Canada
3. Korea
4. Italy
5. Norway
6. Czech Republic
7. Sweden
8. Japan

LUCAS AYKROYD

http://www.iihf.com/home-of-hockey/news/news-singleview/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=12461
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