Bergeron and Marchand were the heroes as Canada pulled out a late victory in the final game of the 2016 World Cup of Hockey
Remember the night Beantown saved Canada’s bacon?
It was on this date in 2016 when Boston Bruins teammates Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand teamed up to help Team Canada win the World Cup of Hockey in Toronto.
Canada trailed Team Europe 1-0 late in Game 2 of the best-of-three tournament final, but Bergeron, a native of L'Ancienne-Lorette, Que., scored the tying goal with 2:53 left in the third period. Marchand, who hails from Hammonds Plains, N.S., then whipped a shorthanded goal past European goalie Jaroslav Halak with 43.1 seconds remaining.
Interestingly, Europe’s only goal was scored by Bergeron and Marchand’s usual teammate, Bruins captain Zdeno Chara.
Canada beat Europe 3-1 in the first game of the final and went undefeated during the tournament, which is the most recent World Cup of Hockey to be played, although it is set to return in 2028. Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins was named the tournament MVP.
As a funny footnote, when Halak left the New York Islanders as a free agent in 2018, guess who he signed with next?
You guessed it - the Boston Bruins. As they say, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!
Also on this date:
1997 – Pat LaFontaine began the final chapter of his New York State trilogy when the Buffalo Sabres traded their captain to the New York Rangers. The 32-year-old center had played six seasons with Buffalo after spending the first eight seasons of his career with the New York Islanders, but the latest in a series of concussions had wiped out most of his 1996-97 campaign and the Sabres were unwilling to have him return due to what they said were concerns for his health. LaFontaine’s one season with the Rangers was mostly successful – he scored 23 goals and 62 points, including the 1,000th regular season point of his career – but yet another concussion in March 1998 knocked him out of the lineup and forced him into retirement. He played 934 total games, all for the three NHL teams based in New York State, and scored 494 goals. The St. Louis native was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2003, and in 2017 he was selected as one of the NHL’s 100 Greatest Players.
1997 – Chris Pronger was named the 16th captain of the St. Louis Blues, replacing Wayne Gretzky, who had signed with the Rangers. Pronger, still days away from his 23rd birthday, became the youngest captain in franchise history. He served in the role until injuries kept him out of most of the 2002-03 season, during which Al MacInnis replaced him on an interim basis. When Pronger returned in the fall of 2003, he insisted that MacInnis retain the ‘C.’
1999 – Kelly Buchberger was named the first captain of the Atlanta Thrashers. Atlanta had chosen him in the expansion draft from the Edmonton Oilers, where he had also been captain and, along with Marty McSorley, was the last member of the team’s 1980s dynasty to depart the organization. Buchberger played parts of 13 seasons with the Oilers but his time with the Thrashers was nowhere near as long; they dealt him to Los Angeles at the trade deadline in March 2000.
2007 – The NHL regular season opened in September for the first – and, to date, only – time in league history. In doing so, the league staged a regular season game in Europe for the first time. The Anaheim Ducks began their Stanley Cup defense with a matchup against the Los Angeles Kings at the O2 Arena in London, England. The Kings won 4-1, with Mike Cammaleri scoring the historic first goal at 8:35 of the first period and adding another one in the middle frame. Rob Blake also scored for the Kings while the Ducks’ Bobby Ryan replied with his first NHL goal. Anaheim won the rematch the following day by the same 4-1 score.
2010 – Brian Gionta became captain of the Montreal Canadiens. He succeeded Saku Koivu, who had served in the role for a decade before leaving to sign with Anaheim in 2009. Gionta wore the ‘C’ for four seasons until he too left as a free agent, signing with Buffalo in 2014.