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It was close, but Canada came out on top in Game 1 of the World Cup final. USATSI

It was a lot closer than anyone expected, but the end result was the one most had predicted. Canada did not have its best game, but it did enough to beat Team Europe, 3-1, in Game 1 of the World Cup of Hockey finals.

Europe played one of its best games of the tournament, but the few mistakes it did make put it in a 1-0 hole against the hosts in this best-of-3 series.

Once again, it was the line of Sidney Crosby, Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron leading the charge, with Marchand scoring Canada's first goal and Bergeron netting the third. Meanwhile, the Canadian defense did enough to limit quality scoring chances and Carey Price's steady play in net carried the hosts to the Game 1 victory.

Canada will now have a chance to claim the World Cup of Hockey in Game 2 at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday.

1. Europe came ready to play and at least put a minor scare into Canada

From the drop of the puck, the Europeans was ready to go. They immediately got some big scoring chances and drew a penalty to start the game. If not for an accidental shot block by Brad Marchand, it could have been an early 1-0 lead for Europe on an Anze Kopitar shot under a minute into the game.

Unlike most other games, Canada didn't have a lopsided possession advantage. In fact, there were long stretches of the game when Europe was carrying play. Shots on goal ended up 38-33 in favor of Canada as it appeared that the visitors were running out of gas at the end of the game.

This was a much more aggressive Team Europe than we've seen in previous games. They tend to play more patient, but knowing that they couldn't just sit back against Canada, they were doing whatever they could to catch their opponents sleeping.

Carey Price was a real difference-maker in this game, though. The lone goal he gave up was off a bad bounce in front, where he anticipated a shot that ended up hitting a body. That left Tomas Tatar a wide-open net for the goal.

Price finished the contest with 31 saves.

If Europe was going to catch Canada off guard and steal a game, tonight was probably the night. It looked like it had a shot, too. However, Canada proved that even when it doesn't have its best game, it has too many weapons to completely stop. Now the hosts put Europe in a position where they have to win two in a row to claim the title. That might be too tall an order.

2. Canada kind of beat Europe at its own game

When the Canadians were getting out-possessed and out-shot early, Carey Price held them in. That's what Jaroslav Halak has been doing for the Europeans all tournament.

So Canada had to look for opportunities to exploit and Europe provided a few.

It happened early in the game when Brad Marchand exited the penalty box and Canada got a break. Canada managed to clear the puck and it caught Europe's forwards deep in the zone. Bergeron sped through a wide gap in the defense and got a partial breakaway before he dished the puck off to Marchand to make it 1-0 only 2:33 into the game.

The tremendous finish from Marchand sapped some of the momentum out of Europe's attack as they really struggled to get good chances on the power play before falling behind. Considering some of the chances they got early, it very easily could have been 1-0 the other way, but Price was there.

Canada was opportunistic again for their second goal as Ryan Getzlaf took advantage of a bad decision by Zdeno Chara to hold onto the puck too long. Getzlaf stripped the big defenseman and fed Steven Stamkos for the goal.

As Europe experienced in previous games in this tournament, Canada wasn't getting many quality chances, but they were taking advantage of the mistakes and making it count on the scoreboard. It was a strange role reversal, but one that Canada rode to victory.

3. Marchand-Crosby-Bergeron is simply a match made in heaven

This might be one of the most dominant forward lines we've seen in an international tournament in some time. Crosby and the two Bruins have made each other look good time and time again and in Canada's biggest game of the tournament so far, they delivered in key moments.

The unselfish play by Bergeron to set up Marchand while on a partial breakaway was merely one example of the brilliant decisions this line seems to make, with precise execution.

The third Canadian goal featured another tremendous setup from Crosby to Bergeron, who snuck into perfect position for a high-percentage shot. Meanwhile, Marchand was creating a disturbance around the net.

These three players are the leading scorers of the tournament. Crosby is first with nine points, including six assists. Marchand is the leading goal scorer with four and is second in points with seven. Bergeron has three goals and three assists for six points.

Everyone already knew Canada was good, but this line has made this team exceptional. And now they're a victory away from adding a World Cup championship to the long list of accomplishments.