Junior Team Canada posted a 6-0 victory over Switzerland Monday night in Moncton in their first preseason game heading into the World Junior Hockey Championships.
Captain Shane Wright finished the game with two goals, while Connor Beddard added three assists for ECJ, which edged out 42-19. Tomas Milic got the shutdown.
Quebec emerged in the first half with a first goal from Joshua Roy, who came back on his own. Already credited with an assist, Nathan Gusher got the target hit by completing good plays by Roy and Zach Dean.
The first line finally took over in the second period, as Brennan Osman increased the gap with help from Conor Bedard. The power play also ran, as Olen Zellweger and Shane Wright roared for a 5-0 lead.
Canada didn’t stop there, as Wright added his second goal in game three.
Maple Leaf was 2-for-5 on the power play, while Switzerland was 0-for-3.
Ben Goudreau is expected to start the home team’s second pre-season game on Wednesday against Slovakia.
Canada won the gold medal for the nineteenth time in its history last August, in the postponed 2022 Championships.
The Swiss national team played 3-1 in the preliminary round of the tournament last summer and was eliminated 6-3 by Canada in the quarter-finals.
Canada’s first game in the World Junior Hockey Championship will be against the Czech Republic on Boxing Day in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
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