Canada downplays injury concern after Misa leaves blowout win early

Team Canada defeated Denmark 13-2 at Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato, Minn,. on Tuesday night. Wednesday is a day off for the team.

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San Jose Sharks centre Michael Misa did not play in the third period of Canada’s final pre-tournament game against Denmark on Tuesday night.

“I think he’s going to be OK,” said Team Canada’s World Junior management group lead Mark Hunter. “It’s a day-by-day thing. Nothing major. We’ll look at it today and see where it’s at. It doesn’t sound like anything real bad. Should be ready to go on the 26th.”

Canada opens the World Juniors on Boxing Day against Czechia.

Misa produced two primary assists in helping Canada build a 6-1 lead over Denmark after 40 minutes in the team’s final exhibition outing.

“It’s more of a precautionary thing, I think,” said Penn State left winger Gavin McKenna. “We don’t want him to push it too hard. We want him to be ready for the tournament. I think he’ll be ready. If he’s not then that sucks, but I’m hopeful.”

“Why worsen it when he can be ready 100 per cent for Boxing Day,” said Michigan State winger Porter Martone. “I know he’s a tough kid and I know he’s going to be ready.”

Misa, who was the second overall pick in last June’s NHL draft, missed a month of action earlier this season due to a right-ankle injury sustained on Nov. 5. He played two games with the San Jose Barracuda as part of an American Hockey League conditioning stint on Dec. 5-6 before being loaned to Hockey Canada.

It is unclear if the issue that kept Misa from playing in the third period on Tuesday is related to the ankle injury.

Misa is one of three NHL players on Canada’s roster and the only one in the forward group. He racked up 134 points in 65 games with the Saginaw Spirit last season en route to being named the Ontario Hockey League’s most outstanding player.

“He’s really excited to play this tournament,” Martone said. “He’s a really huge part of this team. We’ll be happy to have him and, like I said, just precautionary and he’ll be ready to go Boxing Day.”

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Misa got off to a slow start with Team Canada in his first pre-tournament game. He took two penalties and failed to hit the scoresheet against Sweden on Saturday.

“Just keep playing my game,” he told TSN of his mindset on Tuesday morning. “Get my legs going early, get pucks in and I’m going to try to drive the play more.”

In a bid to spark the top line, Team Canada moved Kelowna Rockets sniper Tij Iginla to the left side of Misa and Martone. McKenna, who played in that spot on Saturday, shifted to the second line with Michigan Wolverines centre Michael Hage and Soo Greyhounds forward Brady Martin.

Misa made an immediate impact against Denmark setting up Iginla for a goal on their first shift.

“We came to work right from puck drop,” said Iginla. “It’s great to score, great to get the chemistry flowing in exhibition games. It gets you feeling good, your legs feeling a little bit lighter and stuff like that. In a short tournament like this chemistry’s huge.”

Misa also set up Iginla for a goal early in the second period.

“They worked together,” said head coach Dale Hunter of the top line. “They had a good net-front presence and worked the puck from high to low and made the proper plays using their D. It’s a five-man unit out there.”

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McKenna generated instant chemistry with Hage and Martin during the first pre-tournament game on Dec. 17. Martin scored twice against the Swedes with McKenna picking up the primary assist on both goals.

McKenna, Hage and Martin clicked again on Tuesday night with all three scoring.

McKenna had gone seven games (five in the NCAA and two pre-tournament games with Canada) without scoring. Tuesday’s tally marked his first goal since a game on Nov. 7 at Michigan State.

“It feels good,” the 18-year-old acknowledged. “Some great players to play with here and they made some great plays to me and, yeah, it felt good to get it in the back of the net.”

McKenna finished the night with two goals and three assists.

“I think last night and the games against Sweden pushed him to play faster,” said Mark Hunter. “And last night his speed and his skill and his shooting and his passing came to the forefront and he got rewarded. The three [pre-tournament] games were good for him. The style of play against the Swedes was high. There wasn’t much room on the ice and that was good for our skill guys to see.”

McKenna has four goals and 14 assists so far this season at Penn State. He has not recorded more than two points in any NCAA game.

McKenna is one of six returning players on the roster. That group is looking for redemption in Minnesota after being knocked out by Czechia in the quarter-finals last year. Czechia also ended Canada’s hopes in the quarter-finals at the 2024 event.

“We’re excited,” McKenna said. “Obviously very confident. I think we’re itching. Losing to Czechia back-to-back years, that angers us and fuels us, so game one we got to be flying, and we’re excited.”

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After going 0/7 on the power play in the first two pre-tournament games, Canada broke through on Tuesday.

“A big thing at practice was simplifying it,” said Martone. “We have so much skill that it can sometimes get too complicated. We have two really good units and if both of them can score it will be tough for penalty killers because it’s a full two minutes you have to work to stop us from scoring.”

Both units scored on Tuesday.

Martone created the first man-advantage marker with a heavy shot that created a rebound, which was batted in by fellow Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jett Luchanko, who plays for the Brantford Bulldogs in the OHL.

“They shot the puck,” Dale Hunter said. “It was a shot from Martone and Luchanko knocked it out of the air. You got to get to the blue paint and get rebounds.”

McKenna set up for Martin for a tap-in goal on the power play in the third period.

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The game remained close through 20 minutes with Canada up 2-1 after the first period. Canada pulled away in the second by outshooting Denmark 24-0 while scoring four times in the middle stanza.

“It was a great win,” said Bulldogs defenceman Ben Danford. “Throughout the game, we stuck to how we want to play. We had quite a few goals, but I’m talking about our defence and the way we were breaking out the puck, and systems-wise I thought we were really good. That’s good to see going into the tournament.”

Canada tacked on seven more goals in the third period.

“It was great from our squad to stick with those habits through the whole 60 minutes,” said Martone. “We could have got away from our game when the game got out of reach. I’m proud of the group in there. We stuck to our habits. That’s big for us to kind of prepare our team for Boxing Day.”

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Danford experienced a scary moment in the second period on Tuesday when he was hit into the boards from behind by Denmark forward Sebastian Stromstad.

“Got hit on the numbers,” the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect said. “It was a stinger. I’m all good. I feel fine so it’s all good.”

Danford did stay down for a few moments in the aftermath of the hit.

“Initially I didn’t feel right, but it kind of went away quick and I feel great now,” he said.

Stromstad received a five-minute major and a game misconduct for checking from behind.

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Team Canada is bringing three goalies to the World Juniors after all. Hockey Canada initially planned to release one of the three goalies brought to training camp, because they did not want a goalie to come to Minnesota and then not play.

“We made a decision that we’re going to keep all three because all three have looked good in practice and in the games,” Mark Hunter confirmed. “We’ll push on with three and let the coaches make the decision on who to start.”

So, Prince George Cougars netminder Joshua Ravensbergen remains with the team alongside returning goalies Carter George of the Owen Sound Attack and Jack Ivankovic from the University of Michigan.

“It’s nice to see,” Mark Hunter said of the depth in net. “It’s impressive. Sometimes the goaltending situation in Canada goes up and down, but Canadians gotta feel pretty comfortable seeing these three goalies on our team, and they have a great future in the National Hockey League also.”

This is the first time Canada will have two returning goalies available at the World Juniors.

George stopped two of the three shots faced in 30 minutes of action against Denmark on Tuesday. He stopped 19 of 20 shots to pick up the win against Sweden in the first pre-tournament game.

In his only pre-tournament appearance, Ravensbergen turned aside six of seven shots in the final 30 minutes of Tuesday’s game.

Ivankovic stopped 12 of 14 shots in a pre-tournament start against Sweden on Saturday.

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Iginla is the eldest son of Hockey Hall of Fame player Jarome Iginla, who assisted on the overtime winner by Sidney Crosby in the gold-medal game at the 2010 Olympics. Crosby famously shouted “Iggy!” to call for the puck right before scoring.

“I was liney’s with Hage [on Saturday] and he says every time he calls for the puck he thinks about that,” Iginla said with a smile. “The golden goal, guys always still talk about it.”

Does his dad bring it up much?

“Not very often (smile). Not as often as other people.”

Not every Canadian teammate is going with the “Iggy” nickname at the World Juniors.

“I remember the Kelowna announcer goes ‘Iggy, wiggy, woo, woo,’ so that’s what I say,” Martone said with a laugh. “But, yeah, the golden goal there, Iginla assisted Crosby so, yeah, that’s pretty funny. Calling ‘Iggy!’ is the same thing as the Olympics back then.”

The nickname isn’t the only similarity between father and son.

“They’re hard on the puck,” said Mark Hunter. “They’re really hard. He’s hard on the puck. His dad was hard on the puck. He doesn’t give the puck away and the other player, to defend him, has to find ways to get that puck away from him. He guards the puck.”

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Crosby, now 38, is a larger-than-life figure for the players on Canada’s World Junior team, even for the guys who have shared the ice with him this year.

“I took a couple faceoffs against him,” said Misa when asked about his welcome-to-the-NHL moment. “Those were pretty cool. I didn’t say anything to him. I was kind of nervous a bit. Those faceoffs against him were a pretty cool feeling.”

Misa went 1-1 at the dot against Crosby.

“I won one,” Misa said proudly. “The one I did win I took a picture of it so I have it on my phone.”

Misa produced one goal and two assists in seven games with the Sharks this season.

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On Sunday, Crosby broke the Penguins franchise scoring record previously held by Mario Lemieux.

“Pretty unreal,” said Penguins defenceman Harrison Brunicke, who is on loan with Team Canada. “He just manages to keep breaking and setting new records. Pretty cool to see.”

Brunicke and Hockey Canada’s strength and conditioning coach Sean Young, who also works with the Penguins, sent Crosby a congratulatory message.

“I did get a response,” Brunicke revealed. “He just said, ‘Thank you,’ and ‘Good luck.’ He said that he’ll be watching and ‘Win that gold medal!’”

Brunicke will be applying some lessons from Crosby at the World Juniors.

“Puck management is probably the biggest piece and the way he can hold onto pucks and make the right decisions whether he’s cutting back or making a play low too high,” Brunicke said. “For me, as a defenceman, it’s about managing pucks and putting it into good areas.”

Canadian teammates are appreciating Brunicke’s mature game.

“You can just tell out there, he’s a pro,” said Misa. ‘Everything he does, the way he plays the game, you can just tell how easy it was for him to translate to the NHL. We’re happy to have him here."

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Team Canada did not hold a practice on Wednesday as the players enjoyed a rare day away from the rink.

“An opportunity for them to kind of unwind just a little bit,” said assistant coach Misha Donskov. “Spend some time together. Spend some time around the hotel together with their friends, talk to their families, and connect a little bit.”

The team will enjoy a Christmas dinner in the evening and there will be some Secret Santa gift giving involved.

“I’ve actually got Dale Hunter,” said Donskov with a smile. “I know him really well. I got him something that I think he’ll like.”

Donskov spent three seasons on Hunter’s staff with the London Knights (2009-12). He helped them win an OHL championship in 2012 while serving as assistant general manager and assistant coach.

“We’ve got a great friendship,” said Donskov. “He’s a great mentor. I think he’s one of the best coaches in the world and I learned a ton from him. He makes it fun every day. He’s the first guy at the rink every morning. He’s a grinder, but it’s been a lot of fun.”

Donskov notes that Hunter arrives to the rink between 5 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. every morning. And despite his no-nonsense persona, Donskov is quick to highlight Hunter’s lighter side.

“He keeps you on your toes all the time,” Donskov said with a grin. “A practical joker, who keeps things light when he has to.”

Donskov has been the victim of Hunter’s pranking “many times” but didn’t want to share details.

“We’ll leave those off-camera,” he said with a chuckle.

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Mark Hunter revealed that he has Donskov in Hockey Canada’s Secret Santa, but as of noon on Wednesday still hadn’t picked up a gift.

“I’m a last-minute shopper,” he said with a big smile.

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Team Canada lines in Tuesday’s game:

Iginla - Misa - Martone

McKenna - Hage - Martin

Reschny - Beaudoin - Luchanko

Greentree - Cootes - O’Reilly

Bear, Desnoyers

Reid - Parekh

Aitcheson - Brunicke

MacKenzie - Danford

Carels - Verhoeff

George

Ravensbergen

Scratches: Desnoyers, Aitcheson, Ivankovic