WJC: Canada vs Germany Dec. 27th, 2014

On a Saturday fans in Montreal might’ve wished for a more competitive game than Canada (1-0-0-0) vs. Germany (0-1-0-0). As it were, tonight would be a particularly important showcase for the talents of Connor McDavid (2015 draft-eligible), amongst others.

McDavid lived up to the hype in the first period. Beginning with a goal that came off of a botched pass to Robby Fabbri (St. Louis Blues, 1st Round, 2014) and then followed up by a strong-handed assist to Curtis Lazar (Ottawa, 1st Round, 2013) from behind the goal line, the seventeen-year-old phenom helped carry his teammates through the first period. Things settled down a bit for McDavid after that, as Canada seemed to cool down as a whole in the second period.

Through the second period, the Germans outshot the host country 10-6. Several poorly timed penalties resulted in German power plays that were ultimately harmless, as they were killed off effectively by Dillon Heatherington (Columbus, 2nd Round, 2013) and Frederick Gauthier (Toronto, 1st Rounder, 2013), most notably. This was additionally a good test for Canadian goaltender Eric Comrie (Winnipeg, 2nd Round, 2013), who looked good when needed.

The third period was a return to normalcy for Canada. Late goals from Max Domi (Arizona, 1st Round, 2013) and Madison Bowey (Washington, 2nd Round, 2013) all but put the Germans away after a very feisty effort. A McDavid assist on Bowey’s power play goal late in the third brought his point total for the game up to 3, with 1 goal and 2 assists to his credit. He was named the game’s MVP.

The Germans actually came away looking surprisingly respectable in this one, despite being shutout 4-0 by the host Canadians. German forward Parker Tuomie (2014) had a decent outing, amassing 4 of his club’s paltry shot total of 17. German goaltender, Ilya Shariponov (2013), deserves a lot of the credit in a strong and competitive effort as he kept his team in the game.

Noteworthy:

Nic Petan (Winnipeg, 2nd Round, 2013) – Nic Petan’s 3 assists were only overshadowed by Connor McDavid’s goal and 2 assists. Petan would have been a good contender for MVP. Over the short haul of two round robin games, Petan still leads his team in points scored with a total statline of 1 goal and 5 assists.

Sam Reinhart (Buffalo, 1st Round, 2014) – Sam Reinhart had a good game in which he did a lot of the little things to help carry his team to victory. For instance, Reinhart was an outstanding 65 percent in the faceoff circle, taking the vast majority of Team Canada’s important draws. He additionally set up nice scoring chances for his teammates and posted one assist on the night.