Canada East off to hot start at World Junior A Challenge
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With the World Junior A Challenge underway in Truro, Nova Scotia, the Canada East team has been on a roll.
Canada East, which features three players from New Brunswick, is 3-0 and sits in first place in the preliminary round standings. The team won its opening game against Slovakia on Sunday 7-2, defeated Canada West on Monday 5-2, then beat Sweden in a 5-0 shutout on Wednesday.
The tournament is hosting some of the best junior A players in the world. Canada East was set to play its final preliminary round game on Friday against the United States.
Canada East features players from Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Four players from the Maritime Junior Hockey League are on this year’s team.
Defenceman Max Jardine of Miramichi, defenceman Ryan Hackett of neighbouring Barnaby River, and forward Will Allen of Moncton are the three New Brunswickers playing in the tournament.
Allen, who currently plays for the Miramichi Timberwolves, has put points on the board in his first few games. The 18-year-old added two assists in Canada’s opening game win over Slovakia.
Jardine plays with Allen on the Timberwolves while Hackett plays for the Campbellton Tigers in the MHL. This marks the very first international tournament for all three players.
The semifinal matches will take place on Saturday, and the gold and bronze medal games are scheduled for Sunday.
Win or lose on Friday, Canada will remain in the top two slots going into the semifinals.
The World Junior A Challenge has been host to various future NHL players including Carolina Hurricanes all-star Andrei Svechnikov and Stanley Cup champions Vladimir Tarasenko and Cale Makar, to name a few.
Canada East has never won the World Junior A Challenge, finishing with a silver medal seven times since the start of the tournament back in 2006. Last year, the team lost in the gold medal game to the U.S.
Around the MHL
Following three New Brunswick games on Friday, this weekend will be light in the Maritime Junior Hockey League with just three games being played by New Brunswick teams on Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, the Campbellton Tigers will travel south to take on the Miramichi Timberwolves at 7 p.m. Both teams are looking to get back on track as the Tigers and Timberwolves have been under .500 in their last 10 games.
Campbellton is fifth in the EastLink North division with a 10-14-1 record. The Tigers have lost six of their past 10 games.
The Timberwolves are still among the top teams in the league, but have lately been sliding. While still third in the division, the last 10 games have been a struggle for Miramichi with a record of 3-5-1-1.
On Sunday, the last place Grand Falls Rapids will play the Fredericton Red Wings at home, starting at 3 p.m. Fredericton looks to climb up in the standings, being just three points behind the Timberwolves.
The weekend will wrap up with the West Kent Steamers hosting the Edmundston Blizzard at 7 p.m. At 19-7-2, West Kent looks to maintain its slim division lead as the 18-8 Blizzard are eyeing to be on top.
Both teams are on a winning streak with West Kent winning four straight while Edmundston has won eight games in a row. Either way, a winning streak will snap on Sunday.
With a record of 13-6, a league leading goals against average of 2.25, and a league leading save percentage of 0.929, Blizzard goalie Nicholas Sheehan has been a vital part of Edmundston’s success.
The N.B.-P.E.I. report
The New Brunswick-P.E.I. Major U18 Hockey League won’t have many games this weekend with just one on Saturday, and another on Sunday.
Saturday’s matchup will be between the Contendo Northern Moose and the Charlottetown Bulk Carriers Knights at 7 p.m. in Charlottetown. The Moose are looking to improve from their previous game as they lost to Kensington in a 10-3 blowout.
The Moose are 7-11-2, and are second-last in the league’s standings.
On Sunday, Charlottetown will go on the road to play the Fredericton Office Interior Caps at 3 p.m. Fredericton sits in fourth place with a 9-11-0-1 record. The team is 11 points back of the first-place Moncton Rallye Motors Nissan Flyers.
As of Friday, the Flyers have a 14-3-2 record and a five-point lead in the league standings. They are currently riding a five-game winning streak going back to Nov. 26.
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