Having played junior hockey for the Seattle Breakers and in the NHL for the Vancouver Canucks, head coach Tim Hunter is no stranger to the kind of Pacific storm his Canadian team players were witness to Thursday.
Hunter hopes the squad will bring its own storm surge to Blanshard Street Friday when sa国际传媒 meets Slovakia at 5 p.m. in a pre-world junior championship game at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
Nobody in the Canadian camp was completely satisfied with Wednesday鈥檚 5-3 pre-tournament victory over Switzerland, especially a second period in which the underdog Swiss cut sa国际传媒鈥檚 4-1 lead to 4-3.
鈥淚 hope that鈥檚 our worst game through this whole process,鈥� said Hunter.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 take your foot off the gas.鈥�
That鈥檚 a lesson that will certainly be drummed into the Canadian players. Another is that national team play is a whole other beast than club play.
鈥淭here are so many emotions in this tournament,鈥� said forward Jack Studnicka, a Boston Bruins second-round draft pick out of the Oshawa General of the OHL.
鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely a learning process and we are feeling each other out.鈥�
If there is a common tactical theme being expressed in the Canadian camp, it revolves around team speed.
鈥淲e want to be the fastest team here,鈥� said Studnicka.
Hunter, meanwhile, has yet to name his captain and assistant captains ahead of sa国际传媒鈥檚 tournament opening game on Boxing Day against Victoria Royals forward Phillip Schultz and Denmark at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
A leading candidate for the captainship must surely be Maxime Comtois of the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the QMJHL, who began the season with two goals and seven points in 10 NHL games with the Anaheim Ducks, and who had two goals and two assists against the Swiss on Wednesday. Comtois is the lone returnee from last year鈥檚 gold-medallist Canadian team. He seems to have it all and can hit as hard as he skates.
鈥淧hysicality has always been a big part of my game, and hopefully, that helps pave the way for some of our skill players,鈥� said Comtois.
But Hunter isn鈥檛 tipping his hand.
鈥淲e鈥檙e in no hurry [to name a captain],鈥� said Hunter.
鈥淲e are going to let it happen and unfold naturally.鈥�
Meanwhile, the Canadian camp was heartened to see the return to game action Wednesday of Los Angeles Kings鈥� second-round draft pick Jaret Anderson-Dolan, who began the season with five games in the NHL and his first career assist for the Kings, and five games in the AHL, with two assists for the Ontario Reign. The WHL Spokane Chiefs forward had been out since early November following wrist surgery.
鈥淚t felt good to get that first shift out of the way,鈥� said Anderson-Dolan.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a matter of getting the rhythm back and trying to get the range of motion back.鈥�
If Canadian staff were relieved to get Anderson-Dolan back, that鈥檚 nothing compared to the player himself.
鈥淎ny Canadian boy would say it鈥檚 a dream come true to be able to wake up on Boxing Day and play for sa国际传媒,鈥� said Anderson-Dolan.
Meanwhile, Slovakia features nine returnees from last year鈥檚 2018 world junior tournament team in Buffalo, and could be a sleeper side in Pool B, which will be based on Blanshard.
Included in the mix are forward Milos Roman of the Vancouver Giants 鈥� the biggest rival of the WHL鈥檚 Victoria Royals 鈥� and who is well acquainted with the Memorial Centre. Andrej Kukuca of the Seattle Thunderbirds is another WHL forward in Slovakian colours who has skated previously on Blanshard.
Twitter.com/tc_vicsports
