Josh Morrissey and Connor McDavid battle along the boards during World Junior Championship preliminary round action against Germany over the weekend.
Image Credit: Richard Wolowicz / HHOF-IIHF Images
December 30, 2014 - 11:28 AM
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - On Wednesday afternoon all eyes will be on the World Junior Championship tournament in Montreal as Team Canada takes on Team United States in the final round robin game for the two teams.
Canada is 3-0 in the first three games and went 2-1 during exhibition play after an overtime loss to Russia in the very first game. During the preliminary round the team has beaten Slovakia 8-0, Germany 4-0 and Finland 4-1.
Team United States is just one point behind Canada in Group A action after Finland took them to a shootout on Friday. They also beat Germany 6-0 and Slovakia 3-0.
Canada and United States will face off on Wednesday, Dec. 31 at 1 p.m. PST. Two other round robin games will also be played later in the day.
Four local boys cracked the team roster for Canada this year. Madison Bowey and Josh Morrissey both play for the Kelowna Rockets and are defenseman. The duo have been near the top of the point-getter list after three preliminary games with Bowey sitting at three points and Morrisey just behind him with two points.
Curtis Lazar, a Vernon boy now playing for the Ottawa Senators in the National Hockey League, was named team captain just before the tournament began and currently has two points in three games. Joe Hicketts is from Kamloops and plays for the Victoria Royals. He currently has one point and two penalty minutes during preliminary round action.
Sweden is currently leading all Group B teams with a 3-0 record. Out of all 10 teams participating in the tournament, Canada has the most goals with 16 and is tied with the United States for fewest goals against with just one.
Quarter-final action will take place Friday, Jan. 2 and the semi-finals will go on Sunday. The medal games will both be played Monday, Jan. 5 with the bronze medal game scheduled for 1 p.m. PST and the gold medal game set for 5 p.m. PST.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Jennifer Stahn at jstahn@infonews.ca or call 250-819-3723. To contact an editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2014