DIPIETRO WAS THE ‘BACKBONE’
Canada struggled on several fronts at world juniors, but goalie wasn’t an issue
In the end, the image that was splashed across newspapers was of goaltender Michael DiPietro face down as a group of Finnish players celebrated the overtime game winner behind the Canadian goalie.
It made it look as though DiPietro might have been the problem. In truth, he was by far the best thing about a team that failed to advance past the quarter-final round for only the second time in 21 years at this event.
DiPietro, who ended up surrendering a pair of unlucky goals in that 2-1 overtime loss to Finland, finished the world junior championship by allowing five goals in five games. As teammate Barrett Hayton said, “He was the star of the game, really. He played unbelievable. He was the backbone of our team.”
In other words, if you’re going to point fingers as to why it all went wrong this year, look elsewhere. Here are seven reasons why the team failed to medal for the first time on home soil.
LACK OF SUPERSTARS
There was no Sidney Crosby nor Connor McDavid on this year’s team. There wasn’t even a Mitch Marner or Dylan Strome.
Hayton, selected fifth overall in the 2018 draft, was Canada’s only top-five pick. Among the forwards, only Cody Glass (sixth overall) and Owen Tippett (10th) were selected in the top 10.
You don’t necessarily need a wealth of top-end talent to win, as the blue-collar group that won gold in Buffalo showed last year. But it certainly helps, especially in a close game. When Canada needed a goal against Russia and Finland, it lacked a game-breaker who could take over on his own and generate something.
There was hope that Alexis Lafreniere, who scouts believe will be the No. 1 pick in 2020, would have emerged in that role. But with limited minutes as a 13th forward, the 17-year-old was never really given the opportunity to shine.
KID DESERVED A CHANCE
Lafreniere scored 42 goals last year in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League — the most by a rookie since Sidney Crosby scored 54 in 2003-04 — and was ranked third in scoring this season with 54 points in 31 games. So when he made Canada’s roster, becoming only the ninth player his age to do so, most figured he wouldn’t be watching from the stands.
“The story is going to be Alexis Lafreniere,” North American Central Scouting’s Mark Seidel said. “This kid is a special player.”
We’ll have to take Seidel’s word for it. Though Lafreniere began the tournament slotted on Canada’s second line, he was quickly buried down in the depth chart. Logging around five minutes a game — and perhaps too scared to showcase his offensive gifts — Lafreniere’s impact was minimal. He scored a goal against Switzerland and was not noticeable in the games that mattered.
And to those who suggest he was too young to make an impact, consider that Lafreniere led Canada to a gold medal at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in August, finishing first in scoring with five goals and 11 points in five games, including the game-winner in the championship final.
MISSING KEY PIECES
Whether it was Sweden’s Rasmus Dahlin, Finland’s Miro Heiskanen or Brady Tkachuk of the U.S., every team was without a player or two who could have made a significant difference.
So you won’t get much sympathy over the absence of forwards Alex Formenton, Michael Rasmussen and Robert Thomas.
Rasmussen and Thomas are both playing in the NHL, though it’s questionable whether they would have benefited more from playing in the best-on-best tournament than limited minutes on non-playoff teams. Rasmussen has six goals and 13 points in 40 games for the Eastern Conference’s 14th-place Detroit Red Wings, while averaging less than 13 minutes per game. Thomas has three goals and 12 points for the Western Conference’s last-place St. Louis Blues, averaging a little more than 12 minutes per game.
Of course, the bigger absences had to do with injuries.
Formenton, who hurt his knee in a pre-tournament exhibition game, was a member of last year’s team. On a team that had only one other remaining player from that squad, Canada desperately could have benefited from his experience and leadership.
MOBILITY ISSUES
It’s one thing to have a forward group that struggles to score. But when the bulk of the defence is challenged to get the puck out of its own end, the problems are magnified. Canada didn’t have someone like Quinn Hughes of the U.S., who can move the puck out of danger and up the ice as well as anybody. They didn’t have an Alexander Romanov of Russia, who has made a habit of jumping up in the rush, having scored seven points in five games.
Aside from Evan Bouchard, who had three assists, and Noah Dobson, who scored a goal, the majority of Canada’s defencemen played a safe game. They chipped pucks off the glass, thought twice about venturing into the offensive zone and played as though they were more concerned with being scored upon than trying to score.
TALKING ABOUT PRACTICE
We’re not going to pick apart the many ways that Tim Hunter failed behind the bench. But we will point out that it was surprising that Canada’s head coach didn’t hold practice at all during the tournament.
After all, the power play (3-for18) certainly could have used some attention.
When asked why the team was continually off the ice, the answer that kept coming back was the early game starts made it difficult to hold morning skates. As for not practising, well, the players needed to rest, he said.
But other teams practised and skated regularly. And though it was a condensed tournament with Canada playing on back-toback days, it’s not like this was a veteran team that had already played 82 regular-season games. These are teenagers, who have played half a season. If they lacked the energy to practise, then it’s no wonder they seemed to tire out as the game became tighter.
Add it up and it’s no surprise that Canada seemed to get worse — not better — as the tournament went along.