Gaudreau and Nelson made U.S. history

USA defeated Kazakhstan 10:1 on Sunday. In addition to a resounding victory, the Americans were able to celebrate the significant inclusion of 2 players in the country’s history. Johnny Gaudreau broke and Brock Nelson tied the IIHF tournament records for points and assists respectively.

Gaudreau broke Patrick Kane’s records

The former captain of both Chicago and the U.S. national team boasted the most points in IIHF tournaments. No countryman had scored more than his 42 points, which stood until yesterday afternoon. Kane also lost the record for most assists, as Gaudreau had already earned 1 more.

The Columbus winger went into the game with 38 points and probably didn’t expect to surpass Kane in this game. However, he took the first steps towards equaling the record during the 1st period, when he recorded 2 power play assists.

In the 2nd period Gaudreau notched another assist and in the 3rd period history was already being rewritten. He passed to Tkachuk for the 8th USA goal, who completed the hat trick. He also surpassed Kane in assists with his 4th. Midway through the final period, he added a goal to his assists and the new USA scoring leader was born.

“It’s great, but I found out after the game and I want to thank all my teammates. It’s really special to represent the USA and I’m happy to play on the national team. Every time I get a chance it’s an honor,” Gaudreau ended his interview.

Nelson tied the shooting record

The holder of the highest number of goals for the national team at the World Cup so far is Bruce Mather, who netted 19 goals in his 40s. The same number was even recorded by Buzz Johnson, who represented his country a decade later.

In the 17th minute, Jake Sanderson took a shot from the blue line, the Kazakh goaltender only pulled the puck in front of him and the New York Islanders forward tapped the puck into the empty net. Nelson scored goal number 19, equaling his predecessor. However, unlike them, he will still have opportunities to increase his goal tally.

“The World Cup is an important tournament for us. Maybe it doesn’t get the appreciation at home like it does here, but there are still a lot of great players coming here. Everyone is proud to be nominated and everyone who came wants to win,” Nelson said of America’s ambitions.

Source: WORLD CUP 2024