TSN reporter Mark Masters checks in daily with news and notes on Team Canada. The team skated at the practice rink at the Ostravar Arena on Friday.
With Canada down 2-0 in the first period on Boxing Day, Alexis Lafreniere looked to spark a comeback. But before he exploded for three assists and an incredible game-winning goal, the 18-year-old landed a couple big checks on the American top defensive pair of Mattias Samuelsson and Jordan Harris.
“I didn’t really realize it,” said smiling Ottawa defenceman Kevin Bahl. “I thought he was all skill, but he loves to throw around the body and I absolutely love that. I saw him just going full speed after that guy, dummied him and thought I better get a hit and I saw that guy coming down the wall.”
Moments later the 6-foot-7 Bahl delivered a bone-crushing blow on American forward Bobby Brink and it was game on in Ostrava.
“Early in the game the U.S. had a lot of the momentum,” said Flint centre Ty Dellandrea, “and we had a couple big hits all on the same shift and that turned the tide.”
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“I always try to bring some physicality in my game,” said Lafreniere, who stands 6-foot-1, 194 pounds. “It’s something I want to improve. Getting involved physically is always good. A couple good hits and it helped me just start to be in the game a little bit more.”
Lafreniere got himself going and the team going and then the Rimouski left winger, the consensus top pick in the next NHL entry draft, saved the day, striking back seven seconds after the Americans had tied things.
“Something else,” said captain Barrett Hayton of the game-winning goal. “I mean, you see his speed off the faceoff, he jumps through and bats that puck down. Not many guys are going to do that. That was a pretty flat pass by the American guy (K’Andre Miller). Just unbelievable hand-eye.”
But Lafreniere wasn’t done. He finished what he started by setting up Dellandrea for the empty-net goal.
“It’s incredible,” Dellandrea gushed. “Everything about him, it’s fun to watch. He’s skilled, but he’s also all over the puck, hunting and I think he showed last night that he can play an all-around game. He was on in the last minute and made that pass for the empty-netter and shutting down to finish the game. I think he can do everything.”
“He’s a gamer,” said assistant coach Andre Tourigny. “He’s a money player. He’s a competitor. He wants to win every battle and he’s the same in practice. He has a long stick and he’s always in it and stays on puck, that’s what I like about him and last year at U18 it was the same. He never quits. He’s relentless. He’s a great player for us.”
‘He can do everything’: Lafrenière sets the tone with physical play
Touted as the projected No. 1 pick at the 2020 NHL draft for some time, Alexis Lafrenière showed up and absolutely dominated on the ice against the Americans on Boxing Day. ‘I thought he was just all skill, but he loves to throw around the body’ remarked teammate Kevin Bahl, ‘I absolutely love that’.
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Quinton Byfield, the consensus No. 2 pick behind Lafreniere, had a relatively quiet debut at the World Juniors, failing to register a shot in 11:40 of ice time while also picking up a penalty.
“Those first couple shifts you’re a bit nervous,” he admitted. “I tried to play my best, play my hardest, didn’t have too much of a big impact on the game, but my team played exceptional. Laffy played really well. I’m just a guy hoping for the wins here and any way they come I’m good with that.”
But Team Canada may need the 17-year-old, who’s playing in the top six on a line with Hayton and Dylan Cozens, to be a factor down the road. And, with that in mind, Byfield is hoping to take a page out of his draft rival’s playbook.
“I’m still probably looking for more from myself,” Byfield said. “I definitely could be more physical, hitting a lot more people with my big body. Yeah, I definitely could have a lot more on the table.”
At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Byfield is Canada’s heaviest forward and wants to use that to his advantage.
“It definitely adds another level to your game,” he said of physical play, “creates separation, people might not want to come as close to you because they know your physical and stuff like that.”
After picking up a point in 27 of 30 OHL games this season, Byfield has now been held pointless in three straight outings with Team Canada, including the two pre-tournament games.
Byfield on quiet WJC debut: ‘I’m still looking for more from myself’
Quinton Byfield got his first taste of World Juniors action on Boxing Day against USA, however he feels like he has much more to offer the team. Teammate Alexis Lafrenière gave his advice to Byfield telling him to ‘just enjoy it and have fun, it goes by pretty fast’.
—- After allowing three power-play goals on Thursday, Team Canada dedicated a good chunk of practice to special teams work. Tourigny, who oversees that unit, struck an urgent tone on and off the ice.
“The way the Russians play, they play really low on their power play. They have four guys really low, so we want to make sure we cut seams and stuff like that,” Tourigny said.
The penalty kill looked fine in the pre-tournament games, but didn’t get a lot of work with Canada only shorthanded twice.
“Maybe we were just thinking too much,” said Dellandrea. “We have a lot of stuff we want to hit on when we’re on the PK and sometimes it gets confusing just running around thinking about a bunch of things at once. (Tourigny) talked a lot about practising it today so we don’t have to think so much when we’re out there tomorrow. So he wants to keep it simple and cover all the spots we need.”
TSN senior hockey reporter Frank Seravalli has more on Canada’s penalty kill here: —-
The Boxing Day showdown with the Americans wasn’t just the World Juniors debut for Nico Daws, but also his first ever game for Canada at an international competition.
“Definitely special,” the Guelph goalie said. “Putting on that jersey, hearing the fans cheer for you, it’s something I’ll never forget.”
Daws stopped 28 of 32 shots and settled down nicely after Canada fell behind in the first period.
“A little bit shaky, obviously, first game, a lot of nerves,” the 19-year-old said, “especially against a good team like that, that scored some good goals and probably one or two I’d like back. But, overall, I’m pretty happy with the way I played.”
In the immediate aftermath of Thursday’s win, Dale Hunter wouldn’t commit to starting Daws against Russia, but the coach spoke positively about the Burlington, Ont. native.
“He was solid,” Hunter said. “Remember, these are the elite shooters of this age group, so it’s a little different than your club team where you have a couple elite shooters. Everyone on that team can score and they’re a good offensive team.”
The only even-strength goal allowed by Daws came off the stick of Leafs prospect Nick Robertson, who used defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker as a screen.
“Coming over, pulling it through and around and through the legs and it’s just a great shot,” said Hunter, “and that makes it tough on goalies.”
CALGARY – Ryan Lomberg and Brayden Pachal each had a goal and assist on Saturday night to lead the Calgary Flames to a 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks in NHL pre-season action.
Blake Coleman and Adam Klapka also scored for Calgary, which is 4-0-1 through five games.
Jonathan Lekkerimaki and Aatu Ratyu were the marksmen for Vancouver, which is 2-2 in exhibition play.
Dan Vladar, who stopped 17 of 19 shots in 40 minutes of action, got the win. Devin Cooley made nine stops in relief.
Artus Silovs, beaten four times on 24 shots, gave way to Nikita Tolopilo to start the third. Tolopilo had eight saves.
Calgary opened the scoring at 4:23 when Pachal’s rising wrist shot from the blue line through a maze of bodies eluded Silovs, who never saw it.
The Flames surged in front 2-0 three minutes later when Lomberg corralled a MacKenzie Weegar rebound in the slot and fired a shot just inside the goalpost.
Lomberg, 29, who broke into the NHL as a Flame in 2017-18, re-signed in the off-season in Calgary as a free agent after four years with the Florida Panthers, which was capped off by winning the Stanley Cup.
Vancouver got on the scoreboard at 8:35 of the second on a fortuitous bounce.
Lekkerimaki’s shot from the slot deflected off Flames defenceman Artem Grushnikov, went high into the air, and with seemingly nobody aware of where the puck went, it toppled over Vladar and landed in the Calgary net.
Since being drafted by Vancouver in the first round, in 2022, Lekkerimaki has spent the past two seasons in his native Sweden.
This will be the 20-year-old’s first season in North America and with three points (1 goal, 2 assists) in three games in the pre-season, he’s making a push for a job with the Canucks.
One of the players he is competing against is Raty, who after Calgary had taken a 3-1 lead, again got the Canucks back within one on a perfect shot after being set up on a 2-on-1 by Conor Garland.
Raty, a second-round pick in 2021, was acquired from the New York Islanders in the Bo Horvat trade. He’s spent most of the past two seasons in the AHL.
The Flames restored their two-goal cushion later in the second with Klapka firing a shot past Silovs for his third goal in as many pre-season games.
Klapka, who stands 6-foot-8, is looking to make the team’s fourth line. The 24-year-old has shown some offensive pop with three goals in as many pre-season games.
His physicality was also on display Saturday, throwing an open-ice hit in the first period on Nils Aman that sent the Canucks forward flying. In the third, a heavy hit on Akito Hirose send the defenceman careening into the sideboards. Hirose had to be helped off the ice.
UNEXPECTED OFFENCE
Known more for his physicality, Pachal has never had a multi-point game in his 62 career NHL regular-season games. The 24-year-old was in his fifth season with the Vegas Golden Knights organization when he was claimed off waivers by Calgary last February.
HUBERDEAU-MANTHA COMBO
Left-winger Jonathan Huberdeau played in his second pre-season game for Calgary and has been the case throughout camp, the right-winger was veteran Anthony Mantha, who the Flames signed to a one-year deal as a free agent. On this night, Yegor Sharangovich was at centre. In the first game, the two were centred by Martin Pospisil.
UP NEXT
Canucks: Visit the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Flames: Host the Seattle Kraken on Monday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2024.
EDMONTON – When the key to a win is work ethic, it is not surprising to see Mattias Ekholm rise to the occasion.
Ekholm had a goal and two assists as the Edmonton Oilers snapped a three-game skid with a 5-4 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Noah Philp, Vasily Podkolzin and Raphael Lavoie also scored for the Oilers, who improved to 2-3 in NHL pre-season play.
“They are a hard-working team, no matter who they have in the lineup, so we expected that,” said Oilers forward Derek Ryan, who picked up a couple of assists.
“There were points in the game where we were kind of matching that intensity and work ethic and things were going well for us. We let the work ethic dip a little bit and then the game gets away from us. It is a good message to the guys who were playing and the whole group that it starts with work.”
Jacob Melanson, Eduard Sale, John Hayden and Ben Meyers responded for the Kraken, who fell to 1-3 in exhibition action.
“I thought we were getting up the ice well, playing fast, playing north,” said Meyers. “I think we probably just gave up a little bit too much to win that game, but I thought offensively we played pretty well and we had our chance.”
The Oilers started the scoring just over three minutes into the opening period as both defenders tried to cover Connor McDavid on a two-on-one, but he made a nice backhand pass back to Nugent-Hopkins, who beat Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer upstairs blocker side.
Seattle tied the game nine minutes into the first after Oilers goalie Calvin Pickard made a couple of saves in tight before Melanson was able to poke it in from the crease.
Pickard left the game soon afterwards after teammate Noah Philp got angled into his own netminder, hitting him in the head. Pickard did not return to the game.
Olivier Rodrigue replaced Pickard in the Edmonton net and surrendered a power-play goal with six minutes to play in the first as Ryan Winterton lifted a deft pass over a defender across to Sale for the goal.
Edmonton knotted the game with 2:43 remaining in the first frame as Ekholm spotted Philp driving the net and completed a long saucer pass through a couple Kraken players to allow him to wrist it home.
Seattle made it 3-2 5:32 into the second period after Rodrigue attempted to direct a puck away from the net, only to have it hit Hayden and carom into his net.
With two minutes left in the middle period, the Kraken added to their lead as Meyers elected to shoot on a two-on-one opportunity, beating the Oilers’ goalie upstairs.
Edmonton got that goal back just 26 seconds later as Derek Ryan threaded the needle to a trailing Ekholm and he beat Grubauer to make it 4-3.
The Oilers tied the game six minutes into the third on a short-handed tally as Ryan made a great play to draw the defenders his way before sending it over to Podkolzin for the easy tap-in.
Edmonton avoided overtime with 2:53 remaining in the final frame as Lavoie battled hard to retrieve the puck before swinging out front and sending a shot through Grubauer’s legs.
Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch has been impressed with Lavoie’s skills as a sniper.
“He’s got good hands and an even better shot,” he said. “He showed great skill on that goal.”
NOTES
The Oilers still had 41 players in camp — with four goalies, 13 defencemen and 24 forwards. … Seattle was down to 37 players at camp — 33 skaters and four goalies — after cutting eight players before Friday’s contest against Vancouver. … Edmonton had both of the players in camp who are on PTOs in the lineup on Saturday, forward Mike Hoffman and defenceman Travis Dermott. … Grubauer made his first appearance since last Sunday’s 6-1 loss to Calgary, during which he allowed four goals on 19 shots.
UP NEXT
Kraken: Visit the Calgary Flames on Monday.
Oilers: Host the Vancouver Canucks on Monday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2024.
CHICAGO (AP) — Jonathan Dean scored his first Major League Soccer goal in the 84th minute for the Chicago Fire on Saturday night in a 1-1 draw with Toronto FC.
Ariel Lassiter cut back to evade a defender and the played an arcing ball from the left corner of the area to the back post, where a charging Dean tapped in a one-touch finish from point-blank range to cap the scoring.
Prince Owusu converted from the penalty spot in first-half stoppage time to give Toronto (11-17-4) a 1-0 lead at halftime.
Chicago (7-16-9) has just one win and four losses in its last six games.
