Team USA stunned by Team Europe in World Cup of Hockey opener

Team USA were one of the favorites entering Day 1 of the World Cup of Hockey, but as the sun set on Saturday night, they suddenly found themselves in an undesirable hole.

Like a boxer rocked with an unexpected jab to the jaw, Team USA was sent reeling by an early Team Europe onslaught and were never able to recover, ultimately falling by a score of 3-0. Jaroslav Halak made 35 saves for Team Europe to record the shutout.

“We’ve put ourselves in a spot now, we’re chasing,” U.S. coach John Tortorella said via the Chicago Tribune. “We’re chasing the tournament. It’s a spot that we didn’t want to be in. It’s a very dangerous spot but we are here. So we just need to stay together, not blow ourselves up here and have a couple of good days of practice and get ready for our next opponent and try to do better.”

The Americans will have to beat Team Canada, the overall favorites, on Tuesday and then the Czech Republic on Thursday in order to qualify for the semifinals.

“Obviously the next game’s going to be huge for that and obviously the game after that, as well,” winger Patrick Kane said. “We have to learn from this one, focus on what we can do better and get ourselves ready to play next game against Canada. Obviously (we’re) definitely disappointed, not the way we envisioned started, but our backs are up against the wall now so we’ll have to come together as a group and figure it out.”

Team USA had previously split two pre-tournament games with Team Canada, and will need a much better all-around performance to keep their championship hopes alive.