The Czech Republic World Juniors club played their second game in two nights and once again found themselves on the wrong side of a lopsided game, this time against favorites Team Canada. The game broke open early when Sam Reinhart put one past goaltender Vitek Vanecek off of a nice cross-crease pass from Anthony Duclair. The goal came just past the first minute of the game, following a big hit by Curtis Lazar on the opening shift.
Duclair doubled up Canada’s lead when he razzle-dazzled the sole defenseman on the play before streaking in on a breakaway and faking to his backhand, just squeaking the puck past the pads of Vanecek and in. The goal caused the few hundred Canadians fans in attendance to jump up and cheer. It was the only goal to cause such a reaction.
The Canadians out-shot the Czechs in the 1st by a margin of 11-3 but the 2nd period saw a parade to the box from both teams. Seven minor penalties were called and in those seven, three were roughing minors called after the play had been whistled down. Emotions were at a high, a step up from the game between Russia and the Czechs on Monday. After stopping nine shots to keep the Czechs at bay, Montreal Canadiens prospect Zachary Fucale was relieved at the half-way mark for Tristan Jarry. On his first shot against, Jakub Vrana put the Czechs on the board after one-timing a pass from Ondrej Kase. It would be the closest they would come to the Canadians however, as Curtis Lazar re-gained the two goal lead nearing the end of the 2nd period with a powerplay goal.
A scary moment in the 3rd period came when Florida Panthers star prospect Aaron Ekblad left the ice after taking an ugly hit by two Czech players. The hit plastered Ekblad into the boards and ended with him falling to the ice. Once he got back to his feet, he appeared dazed and skated off the ice and was escorted to the dressing room. He would not return to the game and is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He will be re-evaluated in the next few days.
Josh Morrissey and Haydn Fleury both added goals to give the Canadians a 5-1 lead before David Pastrnak finally reached the scoresheet. After a disappointing performance against Russia on Monday night, Pastrnak looked comfortable and was making all the right plays, including getting under the skin of the Canadian defense.
The fourth line of Nick Paul, Frédérick Gauthier and Greg Chase scored the final goal of the game after putting forth an excellent performance. The energy line provided just that; energy. The trio was crash-and-banging all night, using their speed, tenacity and strength to win puck battles, cycle the puck down low and intimidate the opposition. Their dump-and-chase style had the Czech defense often playing on their heels.
Following the game, Anthony Duclair, Darnell Nurse, Josh Morrissey, Nick Paul and head coach Benoit Groulx were all made available to the media. Here’s what we were able to capture, on scene:
Benoit Groulx
World Junior Summer Camp Scrum #1 by Cmd Beaker on Mixcloud
Anthony Duclair
World Junior Summer Camp Scrum #2 by Cmd Beaker on Mixcloud
Darnell Nurse
World Junior Summer Camp Scrum #3 by Cmd Beaker on Mixcloud
Nick Paul
World Junior Summer Camp Scrum #4 by Cmd Beaker on Mixcloud
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @CrimsonSkorpion. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
For the latest in sports injury news, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Main Photo:
