Day 6 at #WorldJuniors: Canada comes up big to advance to quarterfinals
Canada pieced together its second straight victory at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship on Tuesday, coming away with a tilted 7-2 win versus the Czech Republic to improve to 3-0-0-1 and secure top spot in Group B heading into quarterfinal action.
It was a balanced scoring attack for Canada in its latest contest as seven different skaters found the back of the net, including Dylan Cozens (Lethbridge Hurricanes/Buffalo Sabres), Nolan Foote (Kelowna Rockets/Tampa Bay Lightning), Liam Foudy (London Knights/Columbus Blue Jackets), Barrett Hayton (Soo Greyhounds/Arizona Coyotes), Jared McIsaac (Halifax Mooseheads/Detroit Red Wings), Connor McMichael (London Knights/Washington Capitals), and Joseph Veleno (Drummondville Voltigeurs/Detroit Red Wings).
Additionally, six skaters finished with multi-point efforts, with Cozens and Hayton topping the charts with four points a piece. Canada also got solid support between the pipes courtesy of St. Louis Blues prospect Joel Hofer of the Portland Winterhawks who came away 17 saves as he notched his second win in back-to-back starts.
For the opposition, CHL talent was among those pushing the pace offensively as Libor Zabransky of the Moose Jaw Warriors notched a single tally while Simon Kubicek (Seattle Thunderbirds) and Michal Teply (Winnipeg ICE) each came away with an assist.
“The guys are learning, buying in and getting better. We played well defensively and that’s where it all starts,” Canadian head coach Dale Hunter of the London Knights said following the victory. “The power play was good and led to some good chances. We need to continue to improve and we’ll need our coaches and all the players to lead the way.”
In punching its ticket to the quarterfinal, Canada’s next contest comes Thursday against Slovakia while the Czech Republic takes on Sweden on the same day.
Sweden 6 vs. Slovakia 2
Sweden’s impressive showing in preliminary action continued Tuesday as the squad came away with a 6-2 victory versus Slovakia to close out round robin action with a 3-1-0-0 showing and top spot in Group A heading into quarterfinal play.
As for Slovakia, the club has continued to receive solid support from CHL talent, with the latest contest seeing a 36-save performance from Sherbrooke Phoenix netminder Samuel Hlavaj, while Kristian Kovacik formerly of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan netted one of the Slovak’s two tallies. Martin Fasko-Rudas (Everett Silvertips) and Oliver Okuliar (Lethbridge Hurricanes) also both finished the night with one assist each.
Entering quarterfinal action, Sweden faces off with the Czech Republic on Thursday while Slovakia has a date with Canada on the same day.
Russia 6 vs. Germany 1
Russia cruised to a 6-1 victory over Germany on Tuesday to close out round robin action at the 2020 World Juniors with a 2-0-0-2 showing.
Among those contributing to the Russian win were a pair of CHL talents in Nikita Alexandrov (Charlottetown Islanders/St. Louis Blues) and Alexander Khovanov (Moncton Wildcats/Minnesota Wild), both of whom finished with one assist. For the opposition, Nino Kinder of the Winnipeg ICE netted the lone tally for the Germans.
Russia now advances to a quarterfinal contest versus Switzerland while Germany opens a best-of-three relegation round against Kazakhstan.
Switzerland 5 vs. Finland 2
Switzerland has continued to impress at the 2020 World Juniors with its latest showing resulting in a 5-2 victory over favoured Finland.
Trailing after the first frame, the Swiss then scored five times in the final 40 minutes with CHL talents in Gaetan Jobin (Charlottetown Islanders), Valentin Nussbaumer (Shawinigan Cataractes), and Player of the Game Simon Knak (Portland Winterhawks) accounting for three of the tallies. David Aebischer (Gatineau Olympiques) also finished with two assists, while Stephane Patry formerly of the Erie Otters recorded a single helper.
Among the offensive contributors for Finland included former Kelowna Rockets blue-liner and Ottawa Senators first-round pick Lassi Thomson who notched one assist.
Switzerland now opens quarterfinal play Thursday versus Russia while Finland takes on the United States on the same day.
For more information on Hockey Canada, Canada’s National Junior Team and the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, Twitter and #WorldJuniors.