Canada fails to capture gold at yet another international event.

For many Canadians, and likely for the Canadian players as well, the International Ice Hockey Federation's World Championship of Hockey meant a chance at redemption after a heartbreaking loss to the United States of America at the Winter Olympic Games in Milan, Italy. Instead of redemption the Canadians have only found more heartbreak after a tough loss to a very good Finnish squad on Saturday.

A Second Period Collapse That Changed Everything

It was looking good for Canada after the first 20 minutes of play with Canada taking a solid 2-1 lead into the first intermission, but it wouldn't be long before Finland would completely flip the game on its head.

Although he missed much of the NHL regular season as well as the Winter Olympic Games due to injury, Florida Panthers star forward Aleksander Barkov led the charge for his home country of Finland and would find the back of the net in the second. Barkov wasn't alone and Buffalo Sabres first round pick Konsta Helenius and Vancouver Canucks forward Aatu Raty would also find the back of the net in the second.

The offensive onslaught would put the Canadian squad on their heels and they were never able to recover from that point forward. The Finns shutdown the Canadians in the third period with Barkov eventually receiving much deserved player of the game honors.

A Year Without Gold and Growing Frustration

Although the loss to Finland is a tough one in isolation, it is the broader context of that loss that has many Canadians wondering if serious changes need to be considered moving forward when it comes to assembling international rosters.

Canada has now failed to stand atop the podium at any major international event for over a full calendar year, and the best they can now hope to do at this tournament is a Bronze Medal which they will have to battle Norway for.

It is an especially difficult pill to swallow given that Canada already received their wake up call at this event last year when they suffered a shocking quarterfinal exit at the hands of Denmark, losing 2-1 in a major upset.

For a hockey nation that expects nothing less than gold, the wait continues, and the questions about what has gone wrong on the international stage are only growing louder.