The Olympic Athletes from Russia took the lead in the middle of the opening period at the Gangneung Hockey Centre, with Nikolay Prokhorkin beating US goalie Ryan Zapolski. Prokhorkin then struck again to make it 2-0 for the Red Machine early in the second 20 minutes.

Former NHL star Ilya Kovalchuk dashed any American hopes for a comeback, netting his team’s third goal in the last second of the period. And it was Kovalchuk who settled the final 4-0 score less than 30 seconds into the third period.

The win allowed the Russian team to climb to first place in Group B of the tournament, and guarantees a spot in the playoffs. Oleg Znarok’s men have 6 points with one game remaining in the group stages, while Slovenia, the US, and Slovakia are all tied with 4 points.

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All eyes were on Saturday’s encounter on the South Korean ice due to the current tensions in Russian-American relations.

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