Pressure and privilege for Canada
Defending championship on home ice a dream and a challenge for players
VICTORIA— It’s a Canadian Christmas tradition as enduring as gifts, gatherings and punch bowls of rum and egg nog. The world junior men’s hockey championship, which opens Boxing Day and ends with a championship final early in the new year, seems to capture the hearts of Canadians every Christmas season. Canada will have home-ice advantage in Victoria and Vancouver as it attempts to defend the gold medal it won last year in Buffalo.
Of the 10 teams in the tournament, Canada is in group A with the Czech Republic, Denmark, Russia and Switzerland. Cana- da’s opening game is today against Denmark at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. Group B includes Finland, Kazakhstan, Slovakia, Sweden and the U.S. Group B will play in Victoria.
The teams in each pool play each other in a round-robin, with top teams advancing to quarter-finals and semifinals. The final is Jan. 5 in Vancouver. Team Canada coach Tim Hunter acknowledges the expectations to win gold, especially at home, are high and the pressure can be intense.
Many of the players are 19 years old, but forward Alexis Lafrenière is the youngest on the team at 17, making him the ninth-youngest player to suit up for Canada at the world juniors. Hunter wants the players to channel the pressure in a positive way.
“These guys grow up wanting to wake up on Boxing Day with a Hockey Canada jersey on and to compete in this environment,” he said.
“It’s a privilege to be in this environment and play in Canada. We look at it as an opportunity — not so much the pressure and expectations of it all.”
Hunter, one of the NHL’s alltime penalty leaders, said speed and quick puck movement will be the trademark of the 2019 team, which he expects to be one of the fastest Canadian squads ever.
Defenceman Evan Bouchard, who played seven games with the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers before being sent back to the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League this season, moves the puck with speed and authority and he is expected to be a strong presence on the power play. Forward Maxime Comtois, the lone returning player from last year’s championship team, has been a dominant presence for Canada prior to the tournament, notching two goals and two assists in an exhibition win against Switzerland.
Forward Jack Studnicka, of the OHL’s Oshawa Generals, said Canada is getting better every day.
“It’s definitely a learning process and we’re kind of feeling each other out here,” he said.
There is work to do, though. Canada lost 5-2 to Finland in the final tuneup for both sides on Sunday in Vancouver.
Hunter wasn’t happy with the urgency Canada showed or the power play.
He said he might tinker with the lines.
“We will reassess things as we go,” he said.
“I like to stay consistent, give them some time to build chemistry.
“They’ve had three games now. We’ll analyze that.”
Hunter still isn’t sure who his No. 1 goaltender will be. Canucks prospect Michael DiPietro and Maple Leafs draft pick Ian Scott are the candidates.
“That’s a good question,” Hunter said. “They both made some big stops (Sunday). We let four goals in (plus) an empty netter. Its hard to say. You are never happy with four goals. We’ll look at it and analyze it. That’s why we started both guys to give them a chance to play. We believe in them both. There is no one guy that has an edge over the other.”