Canada seeking world junior rebound
After sixth-place finish a year ago, host nation’s players motivated to push for gold medal
TORONTO — Hockey Canada’s Scott Salmond feels there will be no shortage of motivation for the Canadian players at the 2017 world junior hockey championship.
Canada didn’t make it past the quarter-finals at the 2016 tournament in Helsinki, falling to eventual champion Finland. Salmond says that disappointing loss has players feeling like they have something to prove at the Dec. 26-Jan. 5 event in Montreal and Toronto.
“I think there was a level of embarrassment to the result last year,” Salmond said Tuesday after the team’s camp roster was announced. “I don’t necessarily think to the performance, but to the result. I think there’s some guys like Dylan Strome, who is very focused on coming back, making an impression and trying to redeem what happened last year.
“I think playing at home lends to that, too.”
Strome, an Arizona Coyotes prospect who plays for the OHL’s Erie Otters, is one of five returning players who will compete for a spot on Canada’s 22-man roster.
In all, Hockey Canada named 32 players — 19 forwards, 10 defencemen and three goalies — to its selection camp roster Dec. 10-14 in Blainville, Que. Other returning players include Mathew Barzal (Seattle, WHL), Thomas Chabot (Saint John, QMJHL), Julien Gauthier (Val-d’Or, QMJHL) and Mitchell Stephens (Saginaw, OHL).
Canada is in Group B at this year’s tournament with the United States, Russia, Slovakia and Latvia. Group A includes the Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland.
“I think you temper expectations based on the fact that there’s been seven different winners in seven years and those seven teams didn’t medal the year before,” Salmond said. “What that tells me is there’s parity. It’s very, very difficult to win. For me, I always thought there was four or five teams (but) there’s probably seven teams that could win this thing.
“So that’s a challenge. I think the fact that we don’t have all of our best players, if you will, we’re missing a number of players in the National Hockey League, tempers expectations. But at the same time, whenever we get 22 Canadians together with that Canadian jersey, I like our chances.”
Canada will open the preliminary round against Russia on Boxing Day at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre. Quarter-final play begins Jan. 2 and the medal games are set for Jan. 5 at Montreal’s Bell Centre.
Canada leads all nations with 16 world junior gold medals.