Heat Captain Aaron Johnson Helps Team Canada to 13th Spengler Cup Win
December 31, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Stockton Heat News Release
Aaron Johnson, Team Canada Celebrate Spengler Cup Winning Goal
(Stockton Heat, Credit: Pascal Muller)
Davos, Switzerland - Heat team captain Aaron Johnson helped Team Canada to their 13th ever Spengler Cup victory earlier today with a 4-3 win over HC Lugano.
Johnson, 32, set up Matt D'Agostini's game winning goal by skating behind the Lugano net, spinning around and zipping a pass that was deflected by Matthew Lombardi at the side of the net. That deflection landed right on the stick of D'Agostini who ripped the shot past the goaltender, eventually giving Team Canada the 4-3 win and the Spengler Cup. It was Johnson's first point of the tournament.
"We had such a special group of guys - it is something I will remember for the rest of my life," Johnson said after the game. "I came in not knowing a lot about the tournament, and the atmosphere was more than I could ever imagine. The fans were amazing and I had so much fun playing for Team Canada with all of the families in the stands and people watching back home. What an experience - so proud."
Playing with the Maple Leaf on his chest for the first time in his career, Johnson led Team Canada in average time-on-ice with 19:57 in the four games played. The Heat captain led the team in time-on-ice three of the four games, finishing just 18 seconds back of fellow defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron in the semi-final game against the host team, HC Davos.
Team Canada went 4-0 in the tournament, beating Russian side Avtmobilist Yekaterinburg, HC Davos twice, and finally fellow Swiss side, HC Lugano in the final.
The Spengler Cup, handed out for the 89th time, is the oldest invitational hockey tournament in the world, being handed out since 1923, originally created as a means to promote teams from German-speaking countries in Europe following the First World War. Canada began playing in the tournament in 1984.
Johnson was joined by fellow AHL'ers Drew MacIntyre (G, Charlotte), Keith Aulie (D, Springfield), Trevor Carrick (D, Charlotte), Mark Cundari (D, San Jose), Manny Malhotra (F, Lake Erie) and Dan Paille (F, Rockford) on Team Canada's 23-man roster.
Images from this story
 Spengler Cup Trophy (Gian Ehrenzeller) |
 Team Canada Celebrates Spengler Cup Win (Gian Ehrenzeller) |
 Aaron Johnson, Team Canada Celebrate Spengler Cup Winning Goal (Pascal Muller) |
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