Excerpt from 'Rocket Hockey Report' of host Amy Johnson commenting on the positive aspects of Laval's season.

There were four of the five Montreal Canadiens representatives in action on Thursday at the 2024 IIHF World Championship.

At Prague Arena, Olivier Kapanen increased Finland's lead to 2-0 with his tournament leading sixth goal of the tournament. The 20-year-old forward stole the puck from an opponent and beat David Kickert with a wrist shot. In 15:33 ice time, he took three shots on goal, two penalty minutes, minus-1, and won 57.1 percent of faceoffs.

Following the game, RDS' Luc Gelinas reported that Kent Hughes and Kapanen's agent agreed to meet following this tournament to discuss a potential entry level contract for the upcoming season.

The Austrians bounced back with three unanswered goals, including the winner with less than one second remaining to obtain the victory. Vinzenz Rohrer was held off the scoresheet, won 87.5 percent of draws, minus-1 in 10:42 of action.

Later in the day, Kaiden Guhle obtained an assist on his team's opening goal as Canada defeated Norway 4-1 at Prague Arena. He was Canada's second most used defenseman of the contest with 18:24, one shot on goal and plus-1.

Meanwhile at Ostrava Arena, the United States blanked France 5-0. Cole Caufield's name was not penciled on the scoresheet, finishing the game with three shots on goal, plus-1 in 15:52 of action. The Canadiens forward has collected two assists in four games since the beginning of the competition.

On Friday, two Canadiens representatives will hit the ice when the U.S.A with Caufield face Poland and Austria with Rohrer take on Czechia. Puck drop for both games are at 2:20pm eastern and available on TSN 3 and TSN 1 respectively in Canada.

Be sure to bookmark THN.com/Montreal for year-round coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, Laval Rocket, and Habs prospects playing in leagues around the world.

Montreal Canadiens Prospect Oliver Kapanen Keeps Scoring