Rocco Grimaldi kept up the hard work and finally saw his luck turn around with two second period goals as Team USA won the gold medal with a 3-1 victory over Team Sweden at the 2013 World Junior Hockey Championship on Saturday.
Grimaldi tied the game with his first goal as he worked hard behind the net and spun a shot in off goaltender Niklas Lundstrom’s pad at the 7:42 mark. Trocheck and defenseman Pat Sieloff drew assists on the even strength marker.
The goal sparked the the Americans and two and a half minutes later Grimaldi had Jacob Trouba’s blast from the point deflect off his body and into the net for the eventual game-winning goal.
Vincent Trocheck (pictured) took a pass from J.T. Miller and fired the puck into the empty cage with 16 seconds remaining to ice the win.
Grimaldi finished with four shots on goal and a +2 rating and was named the game’s best player for the Americans. He also had the best scoring chance for Team USA in the first period when he ripped a shot past Lundstrom but had the puck catch both posts and stay out of the net.
Vincent Trocheck finished the game with three shots on goal and a +3 rating. Trocheck had a tough night on draws, winning only 3/9 face-offs.
Panther defense prospect Rasmus Bengtsson went -2 for Sweden and failed to register a shot on goal.
Scoring two goals in the final had to be particularly sweet for Grimaldi who overcame a benching and was bumped down a line twice over the course of the tournament. In perhaps a sign of things to come in the future, he seemed to fit in well playing on the third line with Trocheck. Despite the frustrating start, Grimaldi kept playing hard and was rewarded when his team needed it most.
Click here for a detailed recap of the game from the official 2013 World Junior Championship site.