Canada you can breathe. After six long years without gold, Canada is back on top winning the World Junior Hockey Championship. Endless debate and hand-wringing is always made when it comes to the World Juniors, and this year was no exception. Would the goaltending hold up? So and so was left off. Too much grit and not enough skill. But all those questions were emphatically answered in a dominant tournament for Canada.
Canada is Golden Again
After being left off of Team Canada last year, forward Max Domi and defenceman Darnell Nurse both turned in excellent performances. Domi was named top forward in the tournament, while Nurse was named one of Canada’s top three players alongside Domi and Sam Reinhart. Connor McDavid lived up to the hype, as he recovered from a hand injury and got better as each game went on. Robby Fabbri was hurt in the quarterfinals but cheered hard on the sidelines and was the first player to receive the championship trophy in a nice gesture from captain Curtis Lazar.
Lazar and Anthony Duclair were both loaned from their NHL clubsand proved to be massive additions to this team. Lazar was the guy for Canada, leading the way on and off the ice. Duclair’s speed and skill were huge for Canada as he meshed well with Domi and Reinhart to form a dominant first line.
The goaltending proved to be a non-issue as Zach Fucale and Eric Comrie formed a strong tandem in net and with the way Canada played, they didn’t need to be spectacular. They were sharp when necessary and made saves when needed. More often than not, the future of Canadian goaltending is debated, but Fucale and Comrie have bright futures ahead of them and they were the best goaltenders Canada has iced in years.
The 2015 edition of Team Canada was its fastest and most skilled in a long time. The defense was mobile, while the forwards could outright fly. Canada had no shortage of weapons to score as Nicolas Petan, McDavid, Reinhart and Domi just to name a few, were all dominant on the score sheet. With the game getting faster every year, it is crucial that countries ice teams who can keep up but Canada set the tone from day one as they went 7-0 and never trailed.
Teams who own the rights to the players on Canada must be licking their chops. No doubt Winnipeg was excited by the play of Petan, Comrie and defenceman Josh Morrissey. The offensively-starved Coyotes must love how Domi played. And Nurse is what the Edmonton Oilers need more than anything. McDavid was expected to lead Canada offensively and he didn’t disappoint so the NHL bottom-feeders must be impressed. The McDavid-Jack Eichel battle was hyped, but it was nothing more than a blip on the radar by the end. The Eichel-led Americans flamed out in the quarterfinals as the USA became no more than an afterthought after their performance this year.
Two countries that deserve a shout out are Denmark and Slovakia. Denmark won their first game in World Junior history and became the darlings of the tournament. Nikolaj Ehlers and Oliver Bjorkstrand are the future of Danish hockey, while goalie Georg Sorenson was excellent. On the other hand, Slovakia won the bronze medal, their first medal since 1999. Goaltender Denis Godla turned in an outstanding performance for the Slovaks and he endeared himself to Canadian fans. No team likes playing for the bronze but the Slovaks right from the get-go showed they wanted it more and they were rewarded. To a smaller country like Slovakia, bronze is as good as gold and their celebration after the game said it all.
But for now, Canada can breathe a sigh of relief. Beating archrival Russia in the gold medal game was sweet revenge after four years of defeat at their hands. This was the best team Canada had assembled in years so credit Hockey Canada and the coaching staff. But most of all, the players competed hard and showed skill and poise that belied their young ages. Canada is back on top of the hockey world and the nation can smile once again.
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