IMATRA, Finland -- Canada is off to the semifinal round at the world under-18 hockey championship, thanks to Travis Konecny. cheap jerseys From China . Konecnys third-period goal earned Canada a 3-2 quarter-final victory over Switzerland on Thursday. He scored with 30 seconds remaining in regulation after Switzerland had tied it earlier in the period. Switzerland pulled goalie Gauthier Descloux for the extra attacker afterwards but couldnt beat Canadian netminder Mason McDonald to force overtime. "I think its the same old story, were finding a way," Canadian team coach Kevin Dineen said after the game. "But weve got to do a much better job of showing up the way we play. "Hockey Canada put together some good character players and some talented players. I think weve survived on our talent, now we have to start relying on a little more character." Canada, which finished the preliminary round atop Group A, faces the Czech Republic in the semifinals Saturday in Lapeenranta, Finland. The Czechs, who were second to the U.S. in Group B, advanced with 3-2 quarter-final win over Russia here. John Quenneville and Jake Virtanen had the other goals for Canada, the defending tournament champion. McDonald stopped 19 shots. Dominik Diem and Kevin Fiala replied for Switzerland, which outshot Canada 21-17 but was just 1-for-7 on the man advantage. "Our penalty kill really stood out and I give a lot of credit to our defence, they had a really solid game," Dineen said. "That group really made a difference for us, it was a really satisfying win from that perspective." However, Dineen felt his players didnt make things easy for themselves throughout the game. "Undisciplined penalties, I thought, were an issue for us," he said. "We put ourselves in a lot of disadvantages, not just in terms of manpower but wearing out the body over and over. "Also, our puck decisions have to be better, both in our defensive zone and at the opponents blue-line. I think we were just a little bit too cute and it kept on coming back on us." Diem opened the scoring at 7:50 of the first before Virtanen tied it on the power play at 17:28. Quenneville, a second cousin to Chicago Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville, had the lone goal of the second, putting Canada ahead 2-1 with an even-strength marker at 11:58. But the Swiss tied it again on Fialas power-play goal at 15:43 of the third, setting the stage for Konecnys late-period heroics. "We got the right guys on the ice and fortunately ended up with the puck," Dineen said "Even though it wasnt overtime it was pretty dramatic nonetheless. "I thought the Swiss played a heck of a game, they were the better team for stretches. We mightve learned a pretty good lesson and survived this one. Were not going to be that fortunate against the Czechs. Were going to have to change the way we do our business to have that success." Dineen saw some of the Czech Republic-Russia game and was impressed with the Czechs resilience. "I thought in all honesty the Russians played very well but obviously they (Czechs) are a worthy opponent and found a way to stick around," Dineen said. "Theyre pesky and at the end of the night ended up with the win." The Americans take on Sweden in the other semifinal Saturday. The U.S. beat Slovakia 6-2 in its quarter-final game while the Swedes advanced with a lopsided 10-0 victory over Finland. The semifinal victors will meet Sunday in the tournament final after the losers square off in the bronze medal game.wholesale jerseys . Louis Blues added a special one to their recent collection of victories. cheap nfl jerseys .C. -- Malcolm Brogdon scored 23 points and No.Former Edmonton Eskimos running back Jerome Messam may have suffered a setback in his pursuit of an NFL roster spot, posting on Twitter that he will have a second surgery on his left knee, according to the Palm Beach Post. “Trying to stay positive about tomorrow, its hard tho when you have two surgeries in 5 months. #faith,” Messam, who signed with the Miami Dolphins earlier this off-season, wrote on TTwitter. cheap jerseys. Messam injured the same knee last year while playing in Edmonton. He attended the Dolphins rookie mini-camp two weekends ago. The 27-year-old Messam was third in the CFL in rushing last year with 1,057 yards. To Toronto native also had six rushing touchdowns for the Eskimos. Messam signed a three-year deal with Miami for the rookie minimum, according to the Palm Beach Post. ' ' '
