OTTAWA — Jordan Eberle and John Tavares scored in a shootout, and Canada beat Russia 6-5 on Saturday night to advance to the world junior hockey championship final for the eighth straight season.
Eberle, a first-round pick of the Edmonton Oilers who plays for the Regina Pats in the Western Hockey League, scored twice in regulation, the second with five seconds left and goalie Dustin Tokarski off for an extra attacker.
“I didn’t ever give up, and I think that’s the biggest thing for Team Canada,” Eberle said. “We didn’t give up all throughout the game.
“We obviously realize the pressure on us, but pressure is one of those things you just push aside and you apply it, rather than feel it.”
Canada will face Sweden — a 5-3 winner over Slovakia in the first semifinal — on Monday night. Last year in the Czech Republic, Canada beat Sweden 3-2 in overtime in the final for its fourth straight title.
Canada is trying to match its record of five straight titles, set from 1993-97.
Rutgers wide receiver Britt declares for NFL draft
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Rutgers wide receiver Kenny Britt is taking his considerable talents to the NFL.
The junior announced his intention to forgo his senior season and declare himself eligible for the draft.
The 20-year-old Britt had 87 receptions for 1,371 yards and seven touchdowns in 2008, including what proved to be the game-winner for the Scarlet Knights in a 29-23 victory over North Carolina State in the Bowl on Dec. 29.
“To tell you the truth, I was sitting on the fence,” said Britt, who said he made the decision following a two-hour meeting with family members and Rutgers coach Greg Schiano. “It’s always been a dream to go to the NFL and the gateway is open.”
Footnotes.
Brandon Roy, the all-star guard who missed the Portland Trail Blazers’ last two games because of a sprained right hamstring, will miss seven to 10 more days.
• Milwaukee Bucks center Andrew Bogut did not dress for Saturday night’s game against Charlotte because of lower back spasms.
• Qatar’s Nasser Al Attiyah won the first stage of the Dakar Rally, a 231-mile dusty run in which he held off a posse of Volkswagens led by former world champion Carlos Sainz in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
• Tajh Boyd threw three touchdown passes to Bryce Brown to spark the East high school stars past the West 30-17 in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio.
• Nottingham Forest beat Manchester City 3-0 in the third round of the FA Cup in London.
In another surprise, Southend played to a 1-1 draw at Chelsea.
• Frigid temperatures forced organizers of the U.S. Cross Country Championship sprint race to cancel the event in Anchorage, Alaska.
• Sam McQuagg, the 1965 NASCAR rookie of the year, died of cancer in Columbus, Ga. He was 73.
The Associated Press
