ELMIRA, Ont. – Canada’s National Para Hockey Team opened its three-game series against the United States with a narrow loss, falling to its cross-border rival 1-0 in overtime at the Woolwich Memorial Centre on Wednesday night.

• Dominic Larocque (Québec City, Que.) posted a .971 save percentage, turning aside 34 shots.
• Team Canada went five-for-six on the penalty kill.
• Brody Roybal scored the overtime-winner for the Americans 42 seconds into the extra fame.
• The United States outshot Canada 35-6.

Next Game:

Canada vs. United States – Friday, March 17 (7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT)

Tickets for the games on March 17 and 18 are available for purchase at the door at the Woolwich Memorial Centre for $5 for children (under age 17) and $10 for adults.

Quotes:

“Part of our journey to becoming a team is to bring a competitive spirit every night. I think tonight was the best example of that spirit I have seen throughout our line-up, right from our veteran players to our first-year players. I think we can build on this performance, and even if the shots did not show it tonight, we are committed to playing strong defensively. I thought that was a strong point of our game today.”

-      Head coach Russ Herrington (Unionville, Ont./York University, OUA) on the way his team competed and played defensively

“It is always exciting to get a chance to play against the Americans, regardless of where we are playing. For me personally, it has been over a year since my last game against them [in the gold medal game] in Beijing. You know you are going to face a lot of shots when you play the United States, and that keeps me focused on the game because I enjoy the challenge [the Americans] bring.”

-      Larocque on facing the United States

“We played a great game overall. Everyone was doing their jobs and we played the style of play that we want to play when we face the United States. The 20-minute periods were a bit of an adjustment, but at the end of the day it was a close game against a good team. We can take a lot of great things from tonight, and we are looking forward to the next two games this week.”

-      James Dunn (Wallacetown, Ont.) on the team’s performance

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Para Hockey Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.