KalPa's players celebrate after winning the Spengler Cup 2018 ice hockey final match between Team Canada and KalPa Kuopio Hockey Oy in Davos, Switzerland, Monday, Dec. 31, 2018.
Image Credit: Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP
December 31, 2018 - 9:30 AM
DAVOS, Switzerland - Jaakko Rissanen scored in the eighth round of a shootout to give Finnish club KalPa Kuopio a 2-1 win over three-time defending champion Canada in the final of the Spengler Cup on Monday.
KalPa goalie Denis Godla led his team to a 3-2 shootout win against Canada netminder Zach Fucale and his squad.
Rissanen beat Fucale with a high backhand before Godla made a pad save on Canada captain Andrew Ebbett to end it.
The shootout was tied at 2-2 following three shooters each, bringing it to sudden death. Godla — the MVP of the 2015 world junior championship when he lifted Slovakia to a bronze medal — made five straight saves for the win.
Canada fell just shot of matching its run of four consecutive Spengler Cup titles from 1995 to 1998.
Canada outshot KalPa 40-23.
Daniel Winnik opened the scoring for Canada in the third period before Eetu Luostarinen tied it.
It was KalPa's first Spengler Cup title in the history of the annual holiday tournament.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2018