US rallies to defeat Slovakia at World Jr. Championship hockey opener
VICTORIA, British Columbia (AP) — Mikey Anderson and Evan Barratt scored early in the third period and the U.S. rallied to beat Slovakia 2-1 Wednesday night to open the World Junior Championship.
Kyle Keyser made 13 saves for the Americans, allowing only Marek Korencik’s goal late in the second period at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. Keyser stopped Andrej Kukuca on a penalty shot with 6:45 left to preserve the lead.
“This is a resilient group,” said Keyser, who plays for the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals.
Anderson, the U.S. captain, plays for Minnesota-Duluth, and Barratt for Penn State.
“That game was far from perfect, but good teams have to find ways to win tough games and this team did that here tonight,” said U.S. coach Mike Hastings of Minnesota State-Mankato.