Blackhawks at IIHF Worlds: Connor Bedard's Assist Helps Canada Advance to Semifinals

Connor Bedard's incredible IIHF Worlds performance continued for Team Canada on Thursday. Despite playing under 13 minutes of ice time, Bedard assisted on one of Canada's six goals in their 6-3 win over Team Slovakia.

Canada scored a pair of early goals in the first period before Slovakia cut the lead in half. In the second period, Canada tallied the lone goal of the frame. Nicholas Paul scored his first of two goals in the game, with the primary helper coming from none other than the Blackhawks' young superstar. Bedard drew the goaltender in due to his dangerous shot, leaving Paul wide open for the goal.

Although the third period featured five total goals, Canada maintained a strong lead and ultimately defeated Slovakia 6-3 . With the assist, Bedard now has seven points in eight games within the tournament.

Quarterfinal Updates

Every Blackhawks representative at the IIHF Worlds participated in the quarterfinals. Canada, Switzerland, Czechia, and Sweden have all advanced to the semifinals. As a result, three Blackhawks have been eliminated from the tournament.

With Team USA, Seth Jones and Alex Vlasic were shutout by Czechia. With Petr Mrazek serving as the backup goaltender, Lukas Dostal pitched a 36-save shutout to help Czechia advance. Jones tallied 22:13 of ice time while Vlasic only recorded 12:58 of ice time in the loss.

For Switzerland, Philipp Kurashev served as a healthy scratch in the 3-1 win for his home country. However, Lukas Reichel played 19:32 in the loss for Germany. Reichel's tournament has been sensational, with a two-point effort in the game prior to the quarterfinals.

Now, only Bedard, Mrazek, and Kurashev remain in the tournament. Czechia will face Sweden in the first game on Saturday, while Bedard will face his line mate Kurashev in the second game as Canada plays Switzerland. The winners will advance to the Gold Medal game on Sunday , while the losers will participate in the Bronze Medal game on Sunday.

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