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The first Canada Cup was
held in 1976. Unlike 1972, the Soviet Union's purposefully
weakened representatives proved to be inferior as Canada would roll
through the tournament with relative ease except for one exception -
the defending world champions from Czechoslovakia.
Czechoslovakia was backed
by unorthodox goaltender Vladimir Dzurilla, a boyhood idol of
Dominik Hasek. Dzurilla, a lanky refrigerator repairman by trade,
stoned Team Canada much in the same way Vladislav Tretiak did in the
1972 Summit Series. In fact Canada's only loss in the Round Robin
was a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Dzurilla. Czechoslovakia was
also led by leading scorer Milan Novy, who would be named as the the
CSSR Most Valuable Player at the end of the tournament.
The tournament
was Bobby Orr's first international tournament, and he did not
disappoint, as he was named the Cup's most valuable player and tied
Soviet forward Victor Zhluktov for the scoring lead. 6 of Zhluktov's
9 points came in one game - a Canada Cup record!
Canada was
also led by strong goaltending throughout the tournament, something
which was at times lacking in 1972. Rogie Vachon, who was a late
addition to training camp thanks to a Ken Dryden injury,
statistically was the best goaltender, going 6-1-0 with 2 shutouts
and 1.39 GAA.
The Swedes
were led by Toronto Maple Leaf standout Borje Salming. It was
Salming - not Orr or Lafleur - who was the tournament's most popular
player, at least in Toronto and Sweden
The lasting
memory of the 1976 Canada Cup is of Darryl Sittler scoring the
winning goal of the first overtime period, giving Team Canada the
inaugural championship. Sittler broke in off the left wing and -
following the advice of assistant coach Don Cherry - faked a booming
slap shot causing Dzurilla to fall to his knees. Once the star
goalie was down, Sittler skated by and popped the puck into the wide
open night.
Listen
to Darryl Sittler's famous goal
In
The Book:
Game By Game Details with
Complete Boxscores
Complete Team by Team Rosters and Stats
Scoring Leaders and Goalie Leaders
Tournament Overviews and Summaries
Tournament Award Winners
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