The cardiac Canadians? What we learned from another one-goal thriller for Canada

For the second straight Olympic elimination game, Canada was battling back after allowing an opponent to build a lead.

And after an overtime win over Czechia in the quarterfinal round, the Canadians scored the game-winning goal with 35.2 seconds left against Finland in the semifinal, punching a ticket to Sunday's gold medal game.

The goals for Canada came off of the sticks of Sam Reinhart, Shea Theodore and Nathan MacKinnon, and that was just enough to overcome the early goals allowed by Jordan Binnington.

What were the keys to victory this time? Which players stood out the most? And what should we be watching for in the next game? Here's a look under the hood of Canada's latest Olympic win.

Takeaway 1: The key was Canada's power play, and how it adjusted without Sidney Crosby

There was an opening on Canada's top power-play unit in Crosby's absence, and it was filled by two-time Stanley Cup champion Sam Reinhart. Adding Reinhart to a group that already had four of the best players in the world -- Macklin Celebrini, Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid -- made this a dangerous prospect for Finland.

So imagine the surprise that came with Finland jumping out to a 2-0 lead at the expense of that first-team unit. Finland's forecheck created pressure and the turnover that Erik Haula used to get on a breakaway to score a short-handed goal that led to Canada trailing by two goals for a second straight game.

Thereafter, Jon Cooper's decision to elevate Reinhart to that first-team unit was rewarded, with the Florida Panthers center occupying the net front when he redirected Makar's shot from the point to beat Juuse Saros and cut the lead in half.

CANADA PULLS ONE BACK. It's Sam Reinhart on the deflection. 🚨 pic.twitter.com/tQZmaCdNhT

Canada tied it in the third when Shea Theodore blasted a shot from the point. But what sent the Canadians to the gold medal game was when Niko Mikkola was assessed for high sticking with 2:35 left in the third. The first-team unit remained on the ice for the entirety of that power play, and the only time the puck left the zone was when a shot missed the net and left Finland's zone, forcing Canada to reload.

Canada patiently surveyed the Finnish penalty kill before McDavid found MacKinnon on a cross-ice pass that resulted in the Colorado Avalanche superstar scoring the game-winning goal with 35.2 seconds left in the game and two seconds remaining on the power play.

NATHAN MACKINNON IN THE FINAL MINUTE. CANADA HAVE PULLED OFF THE COMEBACK. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/3jMB2EWWfU

Takeaway 2: Canada has found comfort in playing from behind

Canada opened the men's tournament looking the part of a juggernaut by averaging more than six goals per game in the opening round. Those three games did create questions about how Canada could respond if it was pushed to come from behind.

Those questions were answered in the quarterfinal game when Canada came back from a two-goal deficit to beat Czechia in overtime. Friday was another reminder that Canada could potentially have everything needed should it fall behind in the gold medal game, coming back from a two-goal deficit against Finland.

So how did Canada find another opening to come back for a consecutive game?

The short answer is the power play. The contextual answer is what led to it going on the power play; Canada used its ability to hog possession. That was evident in the second period, when Canada had 14 shots and limited Finland to only three. Constantly applying pressure in waves forced Finland to rely on the counterattack. For every sequence that saw multiple Canadian players touch the puck, the Finns had one or two players for those short-lived chances in Canada's zone because it was trying to avoid being exposed.

Takeaway 3: Jon Cooper's fingerprints were everywhere in Canada's win

There is a reason why Cooper is the longest-tenured coach in the NHL. And the decisions he made Friday further add to why he's in the discussion for the best hockey coach in the present -- and one of the greatest coaches in the history of the sport.

To replace Crosby, Cooper shuffled his second line while maintaining MacKinnon as the focal point, swapping out Brandon Hagel and Nick Suzuki in favor of Bo Horvat and Seth Jarvis. It was a move that allowed the second line to have two-way continuity while providing flexibility for when MacKinnon was moved to the top line with Celebrini and McDavid. That, in turn, led to Tom Wilson going to the second line with Horvat, a natural center, anchoring the group.

Suzuki was moved to the third line, where Crosby started against Czechia before he was injured. He kept Mitch Marner and Mark Stone on that line to give Canada what was arguably its strongest shutdown line, with three players who have built a reputation for turning their forechecking into offensive opportunities in the other direction.

Creating those combinations -- along with the decision to have Reinhart on the top power play -- allowed the Canadians to have options for every situation. That came in handy when they fell behind by two goals, and when they needed to make a late push that relied on constantly applying a responsible amount of pressure in order to force another comeback.

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MacKinnon scores in final minute to send Canada to gold medal game

How Nathan MacKinnon's winning goal in the final minute sent Canada to the gold medal game.

Player of the game: Juuse Saros, G

Most of this analysis has centered around Canada. But at the same time, Saros had Finland less than 40 seconds away from reaching a 3-on-3 overtime in which anything could have happened.

Canada's ability to create and then sustain those long sequences of puck possession has doomed quite a few teams. But what allowed Finland to hold onto a lead and come within a minute of overtime was how Saros performed. He stopped 36 of the 39 shots he faced, with MacKinnon's game winner getting past him by the narrowest of margins.

Big questions for the gold medal game

Can this type of game be replicated with a gold medal on the line? And how much of that depends on who Canada faces in the final game of the men's tournament?

Facing the United States in a gold medal game would ramp up the degree of difficulty if Canada were to fall behind, considering Team USA has built a roster that's designed to have a two-way element in everything it does. But if the Canadians were to face Slovakia instead? Would it be a situation similar to that of its games against Czechia and Finland that saw Canada use its pressure to eventually overpower and overwhelm its opponents?

Overall team grade: A-

Replacing their captain and one of the greatest players in hockey history was done through a series of moves. The two goals that were allowed came from an instant faceoff win and a short-handed breakaway that Jordan Binnington tracked only to have Haula lift the puck to exactly the right place.

Canada's consecutive comeback saw it gradually apply pressure in a way that made it difficult for Finland to even take chances at the other end. Then, its power play scored two of the three goals that now have the country within striking distance of the ultimate goal of winning a gold medal.