'Couldn't ask for a better win': Fans ecstatic after Canada world junior gold in Halifax

The crowd at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax was buzzing on Thursday night after Canada's gold-medal win over Czech Republic at the world junior hockey championship.

Dylan Guenther netted the game-winner goal at 6:22 of overtime to give the Canadian team a 3-2 victory after the Czechs scored two goals late in the third period to tie the game.

"Golden goal, can't ask for more," said one fan who drove down from Moncton to watch the final.

Hundreds of Halifax fans gathered in sub-zero temperatures to watch the game on screens outside the Halifax Convention Centre, a few blocks from the arena. 

After Canada clinched the gold medal, fireworks lit up the sky near Halifax's Town Clock, just across the street from the arena. 

A couple from Toronto said they were in Halifax for the last two rounds of the tournament and were ecstatic to see Canada finish on top.

"How else can you feel? Canada won gold," one of them said. "Couldn't ask for a better win."

The fan celebrations extended across the country, including an impromptu parade in the Nunavut community of Baker Lake.  

Canada earned a spot in the final after handing the U.S. a 6-2 loss in the semifinal on Wednesday.

The red and white went undefeated after losing the tournament opener to the Czech Republic 5-2 on Boxing Day. 

After two periods, Canada was positioned to exact revenge with a 2-0 lead. But the Czechs rallied with two goals 54 seconds apart.

Halifax and Moncton offered to host the 2023 tournament after it was taken away from Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. The Russian team was also banned from competing.

Scotiabank Centre in Halifax set an attendance record during Canada's semifinal match against the U.S. on Wednesday with 10,636 people in the stands. An attendance number has not yet been released for the gold-medal game.

Canada has now won back-to-back gold medals after defeating Finland in August to win the 2022 world junior championship, which had been postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak at the tournament in December 2021.

Economic boost for Halifax, Moncton

Halifax Mayor Mike Savage said it was important to have the tournament return after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Hockey Canada scandal.

"I think that this was, in many ways, a coming out, a re-emergence of junior hockey and the importance of hockey to this country. Halifax and Moncton were great hosts and it was a really great couple of weeks here in these cities," Savage said Friday.

The Halifax Regional Municipality spent $1 million on the tournament, while the province spent $2 million. 

Savage said the benefits of hosting the tournament outweighs the cost.

"Events like this create a vibrancy in the city that makes people want to visit, but also eventually makes people want to live here and invest here, and so it couldn't really have been better."

Patrick Sullivan, the president and CEO of the Halifax Chamber of Commerce, estimates an economic impact of $50 million for the two host cities.

Much of that came from the influx of people booking hotel rooms and eating at restaurants, at a time when business is usually slow.

"This [tournament] extended the season right up until probably this weekend," Sullivan said Friday.

Sullivan said just before the tournament, there were more than 8,000 hotel rooms booked around Halifax and restaurants were expected to see a 75 per cent increase in business compared to their typical season.

"It's been a very, very good event for Halifax."

Fans ecstatic after Canada world junior gold in Halifax

2 years ago

Duration 3:05

The crowd at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax was buzzing on Thursday night after Canada’s dramatic gold-medal win over Czech Republic at the world junior hockey championship.