Russia upsets Canada in crucial New Year's Eve matchup
Russia took down tournament favorites Canada in a tightly-contested New Year's Eve clash, winning 2-1 thanks to a late tally from Pavel Shen.
With the win, Russia finishes atop Group A and will face Slovakia in the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, Canada faces a tough matchup in the quarterfinals after finishing second in Group A. The Canadians will play Finland after the Fins fell to the United States on Monday night.
Canada jumped out to another quick start, as Cody Glass fired home a wrist shot less than three minutes into the opening frame. Russia quickly responded minutes later when Artyom Galimov buried Vitali Kravtsov's gorgeous power-play feed.
Shen later scored the game-winning goal on a beautiful individual effort midway through the third period.
Pyotr Kochetkov stood tall in the Russian crease, stopping 30 of 31 shots.