Canada just falls short in comeback bid at Reeve Hockey Classic

BOSTON – Declan Farmer scored with just under three minutes remaining to lift the U.S. to a 4-3 victory over Canada Wednesday night in a thrilling opener to the Reeve Hockey Classic Series.

The Para ice hockey event, spearheaded by the NHL in cooperation with USA Hockey and Hockey Canada, is in support of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation and is part of the festivities surrounding the 4 Nations Face-Off, which ends tonight in Boston.

The Canadians trailed 3-1 after two periods but were not done.

Dominic Cozzolino of Mississauga, Ont. closed the gap to one at the 0:56 second mark when Tyler McGregor (Forest, Ont.) intercepted a pass and relayed the puck to his wide open teammate.

Less than four minutes later Liam Hickey of St. John’s N.L. grabbed a puck off a face-off and fired it past U.S. goalie Griffin LaMarre to tie it with his second of the game.

Farmer initiated the winning play at centre with a pass to Jack Wallace who went in deep from the left side on Canadian goaltender Jean-François Huneault. Wallace flipped the puck out front to Farmer who connected.

Cozzolino said players on both teams joked about engaging in fisticuffs just before the face-off, but this rivalry doesn’t need any extra sparks to get going.

“To be a part of the 4 Nations Face-Off and have this rivalry showcased this week is special,” said Cozzolino, with a goal and an assist. “It’s a childhood dream to represent Canada on the biggest stage and everyone felt that tonight.’’

Canada and the U.S. have dominated the sport over the last decade. The Canadians won gold last year at the world championships to end a seven-year drought. They defeated the Americans 2-1 in the final.

But this season, the Americans have won the first two tournaments. The 2025 World Championships are in late May in Buffalo and the top five teams qualify for the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games.

“For people who have never seen this sport played at the elite level, this was a fantastic showcase of elite talent,’’ said Canada’s head coach Russ Herrington. “I liked our push back in the game and our willingness to stay in the fight and the push we had at the end to give ourselves a chance.”

Hickey opened the scoring at the 12:52 mark in the first period but Farmer tied it up just 21 seconds later. Ben Musselman and Wallace scored in the second period to put the U.S. up by two.

“I’m proud of how we battled back in the third period,’’ said Hickey. ‘’We’ve had a lot of distractions this week with travel and equipment issues, but we found a way tonight and stayed in it.

‘’Tough finish, but overall this was a phenomenal game and experience.”

The two superpowers face off again Thursday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. ET. You can watch the game for free HERE.