2015-16 National Sledge Team

CANADA BEATS U.S. TO OPEN SLEDGE DEVELOPMENT SERIES

DAVID BRIEN

MONTREAL, Que. – Stefano Tamburello (Bradford, Ont.) had a goal and an assist to pace the offence and lead Canada’s National Sledge Development Team to a 4-1 win over the United States on Friday as part of the Défi sportif AlterGo.

The game was the first in a three-game weekend series between the North American rivals.

Branden Sison (Edmonton, Alta.), Aurélien Bucquet (Saint-Rémi, Que.) and Coalton Martin (Six Nations, Ont.) had the other goals for Canada, and Mathieu Trudeau (Saint-Isidore, Que.) added two assists.

The U.S. limited Canada to just a single shot on goal in the first period, and took a 1-0 lead midway through the opening frame when Kyle Zych beat goaltender Tyson Rietveld (Fort Saskatchewan, Alta.) with a quick wrist shot from the face-off dot.

But the Canadian offence would get on track in the second; Tamburello tied the game just 3:56 in, picking up a bank pass from Trudeau and beating U.S. goaltender Kyle Huckaby under his glove.

Sison put Canada ahead for the first time at 12:09, taking a feed from Francis Lacombe (Saint-Zotique, Que.) and converting on a breakaway opportunity to make it a 2-1 game after two periods.

The Canadians took advantage of their scoring chances in the final 15 minutes, scoring on both shots they recorded in the period.

Bucquet made it 3-1 just 52 seconds into the final stanza, taking a pass from Tamburello and going up and over Huckaby through traffic, and Martin capitalized on a loose puck that was sitting in the crease, tucking it under the American netminder at 2:11.

The U.S. replaced Huckaby with Griffin LaMarre, but he didn’t face a shot the rest of the way.

The series continues Saturday night at the Aréna Howie-Morenz (7:30 p.m. ET), before wrapping up on Sunday afternoon (1:30 p.m. ET).

The 33rd Défi sportif AlterGo is an international event designed to bring together both elite and up-and-coming athletes with disabilities. The seven-day event hosts approximately 5,000 athletes from 20 countries who compete in venues throughout Montreal and the South Shore.