Team Canada’s Byram presents silver medal to teammates in heartbreaking ceremony…

The  United States defeated Canada 2-0 to capture its fifth gold medal at the World Junior Championship and first since 2017. This was done in a one-of-a-kind tournament seeing that players were isolated in a bubble for 52 days, away from families, and created one amongst their respective roster. 

There is no doubt that goalie Spencer Knight, who turned aside all 34 shots he faced for his third shutout of the event, and the Americans deserved the win, but as a Canadian myself, it was hard to watch Team Canada accepted their silver medal. 

To make things even harder for the players, the silver medals were handed out by team captain Bowen Byram and their general manager Alan Millar due to COVID-19 protocols. Team Finland, for the bronze, and Team USA for the gold also had the same ceremony. 

However, it was more joyful than the one experienced by the Canadians, as Byram, often in tears, had to put a silver medal around the neck of his brothers. 

This is not easy to watch: 

Devon Levi made 19 saves in a losing cause for Canada, who had their undefeated record snapped in the tournament's final game. All players should be proud of their performance in this tournament and remember how they battled in the game. 

The U.S. has now defeated Canada in four consecutive gold-medal meetings (2004, 2010, 2017).