Prince Albert’s Stryker Zablocki had a goal and three assists as Canada hammered Finland 10-0 on the final day of group play at the 2024 Women’s U18 World Hockey Championship.
Canada scored two goals in the first, three in the second, and five more in the third while outshooting the Finns 58-7. The win secured top spot for Canada in Group A. They’ll face off against Switzerland in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
“It gets real now,” Zablocki said after Tuesday’s win. “Win or go home. We have to rest up tomorrow, get hydrated and reset. It’s a whole different game when it comes to the playoff round and we can’t look at our success this week and think it will just continue on its own.”
Chloe Primerano and Caitlin Kraemer both had hat tricks for Canada. Primerano’s three goals marked the first time a defender has scored a hat trick at the tournament. Kraemer’s three goals put within five goals of the tournament’s all-time goal-scoring record of 22.
“Those are two great players, but what I really appreciate is that they are team-first,” assistant coach Vicky Sunohara said. “They score these huge goals but come back to the bench and are high-fiving and giving thanks to the teammates who set the goal up. I love the fact they are such great players, but they are very selfless and that is what is special.”
Goaltender Hannah Clark earned the shutout for Canada. Kerttu Kuja-Halkola and Lilia Houvinen split the goaltending duties for Finland, making a combined 48 saves.
The Canadians opened the scoring with two goals in seven seconds just over three minutes into the first period. That tied a record for the fastest two goals in tournament history.
Canada scored 45 seconds into the second, and twice more before the halfway mark to make it 5-0.
Zablocki picked up her goal early in the third period. The Prince Albert product converted a cross-ice feed from Morgan Jackson on a 2-0 breakaway at 2:01 to make it 6-0. Canada added another goal roughly two minutes later, plus three more in the game’s final five minutes to win 10-0.
The Finns finished second in Group A and will face Slovakia in the quarterfinals. The USA topped Group B. They’ll face Germany in the quarterfinals. The other quarterfinal matchup sees Czechia take on Sweden. All games are scheduled for Thursday.
