Fraser Minten, Easton Cowan left off scoresheet as Canada falls to Sweden at world juniors
By Steven Ellis
6 months agoCanada has lost its first game of the 2024 World Junior Championship, with Sweden shutting them out 2-0 to remain perfect after three games.
It was the first time Canada has been held off the scoresheet since the 2021 gold medal game against the United States.
That meant nothing on the board for the Toronto Maple Leafs’ two prospects, Fraser Minten and Easton Cowan. Minten led all Canadians with five shots, with four coming during the second period.
Minten took a four-minute minor for high-sticking on Jonathan Lekkerimaki with 6:17 to go in the first, but Canada managed to kill it off successfully. He then had a nice chance off of a Conor Geekie pass early in the second period, but couldn’t score. He did help screen goaltender Mathis Rousseau on the first goal, but he seemed to use that as motivation to play some of his best hockey after that.
Minten had a solid second period, leading all players with four shots. But with the Canadians struggling late in the second, Canadian coach Alan Letang swapped the lines a bit. Minten joined Conor Geekie and Matthew Savoie, while Cowan lined up with Matthew Poitras and Macklin Celebrini on the second unit. In the end, they couldn’t get things together, like the rest of the team.
Cowan looked the most energetic he has been this tournament but seemed to fade in the latter stages of the game. Cowan had two shots in the first period, but saw his ice time drop from 5:07 to 4:55 to 3:05 in the third.
Canada lost out on the chance to clinch the top spot in Group A and will now fight with Germany at 1:30 PM ET on Dec. 31 to determine second place. If Canada wins, they’ll face third place in Group B in the quarterfinal on Jan. 2, with Czechia holding the spot in the mean time.
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