HAMILTON, Ont. – An 8-1 victory over Switzerland on Friday was a nice finale to Canada’s pre-tournament world junior schedule.
Having Dillon Dube finally make his debut and add to the forward depth by scoring twice and adding an assist was even better.
"He was himself – speed, skill," coach Dominique Ducharme said. "We can see that even though it was his first game with (Jordan) Kyrou and (Sam) Steel, (in) the days in practice we could see the chemistry building. It’s really positive. It can only keep going."
Dube, a member of the 2017 silver-medal winning squad, had been held out of exhibition games after sustaining a shoulder injury with the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets.
His impact was immediately felt as Ducharme slotted him on the top line with Steel at centre and Kyrou at right-wing. The line racked up eight points.
"He’s fast. He’s smart," Kryou said. "He fits in well everywhere."
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Dube picked up the second assist on Kyrou’s goal 3:43 into the game. He then scored two goals of his own in the second period. The first one came when he cashed in a pass from Steel at 2:39 and then he was on the receiving end of a setup from Kyrou at 18:07.
Not bad for a guy who hadn’t played since Dec. 9.
"I just settled in a little bit there," Dube said. "It’s nice playing with those guys. They’re giving me chances to feel comfortable out there. We really clicked well. It made me feel a lot better. It was great playing with them."
The five-foot-11, 198-pound winger’s debut allowed Ducharme to push Tyler Steenbergen – the WHL’s co-goal leader with 35 – down in the lineup.
Steenbergen saw minutes with returnee Michael McLeod as his centre as he rotated with Jonah Gadjovich and Drake Batherson on the wings.
The lineup shuffle was designed to give Dube plenty of responsibility. He had three assists at last year’s tournament and is expected to be more impactful this time around.
"Whatever role they give me, whatever they want me to do, I’m going to try to do my best," the Cochrane, Alta., product said. There’s going to be lots of games, lots of minutes I’m going to have to perform for. It’s going to be tough, but I’m excited for the challenge."
With Dube officially in the fold, Canada’s roster is a veteran one. All players are 19 expect for forwards Robert Thomas, Alex Formenton and Maxime Comtois.
While an older group, Canada only boasts eight first-round picks, including injured defenceman Dante Fabbro. Blueliner Cale Makar (fourth, 2017, Colorado) is the only top-10 pick on the team.
Just four of the eight first-rounders are forwards: Steel (30th, 2016, ANA), Thomas (20th, 2017, STL), McLeod (12th, 2016, NJ) and Brett Howden (27th, 2016, TB).
Team Canada didn’t have access to eligible first-round picks Nolan Patrick (PHI), Pierre-Luc Dubois (CBJ), Tyson Jost (COL) and Jakob Chychrun (ARI). They cut four first-rounders, including 2017 Vegas picks Cody Glass and Nick Suzuki. They didn’t even invite 2017 top-10 picks Michael Rasmussen (DET) and Owen Tippett (FLA) to camp.
So, by necessity and by design, having players contribute up and down the lineup is vital thanks to the dearth of hotshot prospects.
Having Dube – a 2016 Calgary Flames second-rounder – back and healthy lengthens the forward crew.
"That was something that we thought we had," Ducharme said before the game. "We’re confident that we have four lines that can be having an impact on the game on the positive side and chipping in offensively in different ways. We like the chemistry so far."
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GOALIE SHUFFLE
Carter Hart got the start in net and stopped all three shots he faced before Colton Point took over to start the second period.
Ducharme wanted to give Point some work before the tournament, especially with Canada playing four games in five nights in the preliminary round.
"We haven’t identified exactly how we’re going to do it," he said. "But we need both goalies to be ready."
DEFENSIVE UPDATE
Canada played without Fabbro and Conor Timmins on the blue line. Both sustained injuries blocking shots – Fabbro against Denmark last Friday and Timmins against the Czech Republic on Wednesday.
Both players are day-to-day, said Ducharme. He added the injury to Timmins is precautionary and he’s expected to be ready for Canada’s Boxing Day opener against Finland. Fabbro has yet to skate, but he’s "feeling better."
Team Canada must name a final roster on Christmas afternoon, but can leave a spot open for Fabbro for him to be added later. That’s not the plan.
"I can’t say it’s impossible that we’ll do that," Ducharme said. "Right now, it’s not the way we see it. We think that by the 25th, the 26th in the morning, we’ll have our regular roster filled with the guys that can play."
