OTTAWA, Ontario — Danny Nelson netted the decisive goal in the third period, and Trey Augustine made an impressive 38 saves as the United States triumphed 4-1 over Canada on Tuesday night, securing the top position in Group A at the world junior hockey championship.

Cole Hutson and Cole Eiserman each contributed a goal along with an assist for the Americans, while Ryan Leonard added an empty-net goal to seal the victory.

For Canada, Bradly Nadeau found the back of the net, although the team struggled defensively, conceding three goals during seven U.S. power plays. Carter George was credited with stopping 24 shots on goal.

Canada wrapped up the round robin in third place and will face Czechia in the quarterfinals scheduled for Thursday, while the Americans will take on Switzerland.

“We’re not just here to beat Canada tonight; our goal is to win a gold medal,” Augustine remarked after the game.

In other matchups, Group B winner Sweden will play against Latvia, and Finland is set to face Slovakia in the quarterfinals.

This latest encounter marked the first time the two teams faced each other in the same arena on New Year’s Eve since a memorable match 16 years ago in 2009, where John Tavares led Canada to a comeback victory with a hat trick as the Canadians went on to achieve five consecutive gold medals.

Eiserman expressed the significance of this victory, noting, “It’s a storybook moment to defeat Canada on their home turf during such a pivotal round-robin game. It’s something many of us have aspired to.”

The last New Year’s Eve clash between these rivals occurred in 2016 when Canada secured a 3-1 win in Toronto. The U.S. later exacted revenge with a dramatic 5-4 shootout win in the title game.

The Americans began this under-20 tournament with a commanding 10-4 victory over Germany, followed by a 5-1 win against Latvia, but faced a setback with a 4-3 overtime loss to Finland. Canada, on the other hand, commenced their campaign with a 4-0 defeat of Finland but subsequently endured a heartbreaking 3-2 shootout loss to Latvia before bouncing back with a 3-0 win against Germany.

Canada had an opportunity to score during a power play at the beginning of the third period while trailing 1-0 after Ryan Leonard received a roughing penalty late in the second. Nadeau scored a powerful one-timer for his first goal of the tournament, assisted by Brayden Yager just 1:58 into the period.

Nelson quickly returned the favor for the U.S., regaining the lead at 4:22 with his third goal after accepting a pass from Hutson.

The Americans extended their lead at 13:21 with their third power-play goal when Eiserman scored, rendering the score 3-1, following a boarding penalty assessed to Canada’s Easton Cowan.

Leonard later sealed the victory with an empty-net goal at 1:52 left in regulation, prompting the crowd to chant “U-S-A! U-S-A!”

George, who had entered the game with back-to-back shutouts around the loss to Latvia, saw his streak come to an end at 133:02 as the U.S. took advantage of their first power play in the first period.

In the initial period, Hutson capitalized on a failed clearing attempt by the Canadian defense to score his second goal of the tournament during a U.S. power play.

Simmering tensions escalated as Canadian Luca Pinelli and U.S. player Zeev Buium were given roughing penalties, resulting in a heated exchange while in the penalty box.

Leonard nearly increased the lead further by hitting another post, and Carson Rehkopf also had a chance that Augustine managed to deflect with his glove as emotions ran high as the period ended.

In an additional Group A matchup, Finland emerged victorious against Latvia with a 3-0 score, finishing second in the group standings.

Benjamin Rautiainen and Petteri Rimpenen each had standout performances, with Rimpenen securing the shutout. Latvia placed fourth in the group and will compete against Sweden in the upcoming quarterfinals.

In Group B, Switzerland managed to defeat Kazakhstan 3-1 to secure their quarterfinal berth. Simon Meier and Ludvig Johnson each contributed a goal and an assist, while Robin Antenen also found the net for Switzerland, who needed this win after three earlier losses.

Kazakhstan, which scored a goal by Kirill Lyapunov, heads to a relegation match against Germany after finishing fourth in their group.

Lastly, Sweden concluded their preliminary round with a flawless record, overcoming Czechia with a score of 4-2, thanks to two goals from Herman Traff and additional scores from Anton Wahlberg and Felix Unger Sorum.

Czechia’s goals were netted by Petr Sikora and Eduard Sale, finishing second in their group with three victories and one loss.