There is always a danger in having a tournament that is too easy.
Posted at 11:03 p.m.
Before reaching the final of the World Junior Championship, Canada won all its games, and rather easily, by a difference of three goals or more.
The Canadians led 2-0 in the final against Finland at the start of the third period. But the Finns, flouted 6-3 by Canada in the preliminary round, managed to tie the game on a goal by Joakim Kemell, the Nashville Predators’ first-round pick in 2022.
How would the Canadians react to their first adversity in the competition?
It ultimately took three-on-three overtime for Canada to win gold, on a dramatic goal by Kent Johnson, drafted fifth overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2021, in a 3-2 victory .
PHOTO JASON FRANSON, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Canada celebrates after winning against Finland.
Martin Madden Jr., one of the NHL’s top scouting directors, probably didn’t dislike the World Junior Championship.
With two assists, Mason McTavish, drafted third overall by the Anaheim Ducks, brought his total points to 17, just one point off the all-time record for a Canadian player.
But his most important game is not on the score sheet. McTavish avoided defeat in Canada by flying a puck that would enter his net in overtime. Moments later, Johnson scored the winning goal.
McTavish’s third-round pick came as something of a surprise a year ago. The 2021 draft was complex for recruiters due to the pandemic.
Most minor circuits had had their schedules cut short, and the OJL season, to which McTavish belonged, had been cancelled. The youngster played 13 games in Switzerland that winter to not sit idle. It took flair to choose him so early in these circumstances.
PHOTO JEFF MCINTOSH, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Canadian Mason McTavish attempting a goal against Finnish goalkeeper Juha Jatkola
From the first to the last game of this World Junior Championship, McTavish, who started last season in Anaheim before being sent back to the junior ranks, was too strong for his opponents. He looked like a man among children.
In the second round that year, the Ducks drafted a short defenseman, Olen Zellweger, 5’9″, 175 lbs. The youngster got an assist on William Dufour’s second-half goal, his 11e point in seven games, a league-high among defensemen. That’s a record for an 18-year-old Canadian defenseman.
A tournament at the height for Roy
We do not yet know what career will have the hope of Canadian Joshua Roy. Some experts say he will need to improve his speed even more if he wants to make an impact in the NHL. But for a fifth-round pick in 2021, he’s had quite the year.
PHOTO JEFF MCINTOSH, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Joshua Roy (9) celebrates his goal in the gold medal game with Mason McTavish (23)
Roy, 119 points with the Sherbrooke Phœnix of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League last year, scored the first goal of the game on Saturday, redirecting a pass from McTavish in front of the net. It was for him an eighth point in this tournament. He still played 23 minutes on Saturday, as in the semi-final.
Unsurprisingly, Mason McTavish was named tournament MVP for Canada. He will be welcomed by the front door in a few weeks in Anaheim.