SAUGUS, Mass. – Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) scored a pair of goals, including the 200th of his career, to help the U.S. National Sled Team to a 4-3 victory over Canada in the first game of the 2025 Reeve Hockey Classic on Wednesday evening.
“It was a great night for the sport of sled hockey,” said David Hoff (Bottineau, N.D), head coach of the U.S. National Sled Team. “We had a great crowd, and it was a competitive game. We were a little disappointed that we let in two in the third, but happy we pulled out the win.”
The U.S. nearly broke the scoreless tie with 8:48 remaining in the first during a net-front scrum, but Josh Pauls’(Green Brook, N.J.) shot was denied.
Liam Hickey opened the scoring for Canada with 2:08 left in the opening frame, as he fired a shot from just outside the slot into the back of net.
The U.S. responded just 21 seconds later with an equalizer, as Jack Wallace (Franklin Lakes, N.J.) found Farmer on a two-on-one opportunity, who backhanded the puck home to tie the contest at 1-1.
GAME PHOTOS
The U.S. outshot Canada, 7-3 during the opening 20 minutes.
Ben Musselman (Amelia, Ohio) gave the U.S. its first lead of the game, cashing in on a rebound chance generated by a shot from Brody Roybal (Northlake, Ill.) to put his team up, 2-1 with 7:12 left to play in the second.
Wallace lifted a shot over Canadian netminder Adam Kingsmill’s blocker with 7.6 seconds left in the middle frame to give the U.S. a 3-1 advantage heading into the third.
Dominic Cozzolino scored a pair of goals for Canada at the 0:56 and 4:25 marks of the third period to tie the contest tie knot up the contest, 3-3.
U.S. netminder Griffin LaMarre (Haverhill, Mass.) made a pair of critical saves with 4:13 and 4:01 left in regulation to keep the game tied. He finished the game with 10 saves.
Farmer scored his second of the night at the 12:22 mark to lift the U.S. to a 4-3 advantage, as he deflected a shot from Wallace into the back of the net for the go-ahead tally and his 200th career goal. The U.S. maintained the lead for the remaining 2:38 to seal the victory.
The U.S. National Sled Team takes the ice for the second and final game of the 2025 Reeve Hockey Classic against Canada tomorrow (Feb. 20). The puck is set to drop at 1:30 p.m. ET and the game will be streamed live for free on USAHockeyTV.com.
NOTES: The U.S. outshot Canada, 22-13 … Both the U.S. and Canada went 0-for-1 on the power play.
Latest News | Sled Hockey National Teams
New Ticket Packages On Sale Saturday for 50th Anniversary Event
25 Players Set to Represent U.S at IIHF Women’s World Championship in České Budějovice, Czechia, April 9-20
Josh Pauls is Excited for His Younger Teammates to Experience Home Ice at the World Championship
The U.S. is set to host the World Para Ice Hockey Championship for the first time in 10 years.
U.S. Falls in Overtime to Canada, 3-2, in 4 Nations Face-Off Championship Game
Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson each score
U.S. National Sled Team Wins, 6-2, Over Canada To Sweep Reeve Hockey Classic
Declan Farmer Tallied a Hat Trick, While Brody Roybal Scored Twice