RED DEER, Alta. — Canada scored early and often and was also kept out of penalties en route to a 4-1 victory over Sweden in the Hlinka Gretzky Cup gold medal final. Tanner Howe, Ethan Gauthier, Calum Ritchie and Brayden Yager scored for the Canadians, who took period leads 2-1 and 3-1 at the Peavey Mart Centrium on Saturday. Riley Hyde also had two assists for the champions. Hugo Pettersson scored for Sweden, who won 36-26. Each team received eight minutes in the penalty shootout. Canada had defeated Sweden 3-0 on August 3. “Three weeks ago, we put this roster together and I felt right away that it was a tight group,” said head coach Stephane Julien. “It’s not easy when you have so much talent, but they all accepted their role and I’m very happy for them.” The win is Canada’s first gold medal since 2018, the last time this tournament was held in Canada. “I’m so happy for this team,” added Julien. “They haven’t had it easy in their careers in the last two years with the pandemic, but now they have this, a gold medal and something to remember for the rest of their careers.” Canada advanced to the final with a 4-1 win over Finland, while Sweden defeated the Czech Republic 6-2. Finland beat the Czech Republic 3-1 in Saturday’s bronze medal final. The Hlinka Gretzky Cup will move to Europe in 2023, returning to Breclav and Piestany, Czech Republic for the first time since 2021.