U.S. Remains Unbeaten In World Hockey

The United States hockey team clinched first place in pool B of the World Hockey Championships by tying Finland 4-4 on Sunday.

Team USA, manned by minor leaguers, collegians and two European-based players and put together only a week before the tournament, finished the pool B roundrobin with 3-0-2 record.

Olympic champion Sweden edged the Czech Republic 2-1 in the other pool B game, Tomas Forslund scoring the game-winner on the power play at 11:37 in the second period.

Sweden and Finland finished 3-1-1. But Finland beat the Swedes 6-3 early in the tournament for the tiebreaker and placed second in the pool B standings. Both teams’ quarterfinal opponents will be determined today.

Russia, which lost to Team USA in the quarterfinals last year, edged defending champion Canada 5-4 at Gavle north of Stockholm.

Russia finished pool A with a 5-0 record and will play the Czechs in the quarters.

It was the first time the United States finished first in round-robin play at the World Championships, but not in a major international hockey tournament.

The United States will play the not-yet-determined fourth-place team in pool A on Wednesday.

Tim Bergland scored a short-handed goal at 8:16 in the first period to give the Americans a 1-0 lead. Mike Pomichter made it 2-0 with a power-play goal at 5:13 in the second and Todd Harkins scored again at 11:06.