GAME NOTES: Canada vs. Belarus (May 1)

TV: TSN | Stream: TSN Direct

Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team is set to close out its Group A schedule at the 2021 IIHF U18 World Championship on Saturday night against Belarus, with final placement in the group ahead of Monday’s quarterfinals still to be determined.

LAST GAME

Canada rode its power play to a big win over Switzerland on Friday night, scoring five times with the man advantage – including three in less than seven minutes in the third period – to earn a 7-0 victory over Switzerland. Francesco Pinelli led the offensive charge with a hat trick, Olen Zellweger had four assists and Corson Ceulemans contributed a goal and two helpers to keep the Canadians perfect.

Belarus booked its third-straight trip to the quarterfinals – the nation’s most-successful streak in its U18 worlds history – by beating Latvia 6-2 on Thursday thanks to a pair of power-play goals from tournament standout Danila Klimovich.

LAST MEETING

It was a one-sided affair in Umeå, Sweden during the preliminary stages of the 2019 tournament. Canada trounced Belarus 11-1 off a five-point performance from Dylan Cozens (2G 3A). Alex Newhook and Nathan Légaré added a pair of goals apiece for the Canadians, who spread around the scoring – eight players scored goals and 16 recorded at least one point.

WHAT TO WATCH

Who will step up and lead the offence this time for Canada? We knew coming in that Canada’s line-up was arguably the deepest in the tournament, and it has proved it through three games. Shane Wright had a hat trick in the opener against Sweden and Mason McTavish posted a goal and two assists in the win over Latvia before Pinelli’s three-goal performance against the Swiss. Through three games, seven different skaters have recorded at least three points, with Pinelli and his seven (4G 3A) among five players tied for the tournament lead.

For Belarus, Klimovich has been one of the most impressive performers in Texas. Through three games, the 6-foot-1, 197-pound left winger is tied for the tournament lead alongside Russia’s Matvei Michkov with six goals. Belarus as a team has racked up 14 in three games, the fourth-best mark in the tournament.

A LOOK BACK

Canada and Belarus have met five times at U18 worlds since 2002 – the year Belarus was able to secure its only win over Canada with a 5-3 victory in Piestany, Slovakia. That tournament featured a medal round that followed the group stage, determining medallists from its final standings.

Canada has owned the head-to-head since then, winning four games by a combined score of 37-9, including a pair of victories with double-digit goals – the 11-1 win mentioned above, and 11-3 win in 2010 that featured a hat trick from John McFarland and four points (1G 3A) from Greg McKegg.

All-time record: Canada leads 4-1
Canada goals: 40
Belarus goals: 14