EDMONTON, Alta. — Goaltender Sam Berthiaume of the Maritime Hockey League’s Truro Bearcats is a Hlinka-Gretzky Cup champion as Team Canada rolled to an 8-1 win over the U.S.A. in the final held in the Alberta capital.
The 16-year-old from Stellarton, N.S. got the start in goal for Canada’s first game of the tournament against Switzerland, making 22 saves in a 7-3 victory. Team Canada went undefeated in the three-game round robin and then beat Finland 6-3 to advance to Saturday’s tournament final.
It’s the latest accomplishment for Berthiaume after a stellar rookie season with the Bearcats that culminated in a Metalfab MHL Cup championship, Rookie All-Star Team honours, and the Young/Knickle Award as the top goaltending tandem with teammate Louca Connolly.
Berthiaume was a solid 12-4-0-0 during the regular season with a 2.29 goals-against average, along with a crisp .927 save percentage, and two shutouts.
In the playoffs, he topped all MHL netminders in both GAA and SV% at 1.71 and .947 respectively, while his pair of shutouts tied for the league lead shared top spot in the postseason in wins, with eight.
With files from James Faulkner, Director of Communications (MHL)
