Eduard Sale scores a hat trick, Carson Rehkopf earns an elevated role, and Tomas Hamara was working the blue line on Day 2 of the World Junior Championships.
Day 2 of the World Junior Championships saw a lot of high scoring games. Three games were very one-sided, and one was a historical win.
Canada and Czechia played two of their "easiest" games in the round robin, both dominating offensively. Slovakia blanked Switzerland as well, with a massive performance in goal.
Germany made history today against Finland, earning their first win ever against the Fins at the World Juniors.
Here are the final scores:
Slovakia beats Switzerland 3-0.
Germany beats Finland 4-3.
Czechia beats Norway 8-1.
Canada beats Latvia 10-0.
OHL Point Totals on Day 2:
Eduard Sale (3G), Carson Rehkopf (2G), Matyas Sapovaliv (1G, 1A), Ty Nelson (2A), Tomas Hamara (2A), Servac Petrovsky (1G), Kasper Halttunen (1G), Matthew Poitras (1G), Owen Allard (1G), Filip Mesar (1A), Oliver Bonk (1A)
Three Stars of Day 2 at the World Juniors:
1st Star: Eduard Sale, Czechia (Barrie Colts, OHL)
8 (CZE) - 1 (NOR)
Though he hasn't had the start that many expected in Barrie, there is still a lot to like about Eduard Sale. This is the best game that we have seen him play since last season, where he looks more like "himself" again.
Yes, he scored three goals to help lift Czechia over Norway in a game that was never close, but we saw things out of Sale that we haven't seen in the OHL. The wider international ice seems to spark his offensive creativity and willingness to drive into the middle. He was using the middle of the ice much more, in fact he scored all three of his goals from right in front of the net.
The smaller ice in the OHL has made Sale almost "invisible" as he doesn't seem to want to hold onto the puck and drive it into the zone. He seems to want to get it off of his stick as soon as possible. Learning and developing the confidence to drive the middle on smaller ice is a vital part of his growth into a pro player.
The hope is that this tournament sparks his confidence tremendously, and he is able to return to Barrie as a better version of himself.
2nd Star: Carson Rehkopf, Canada (Kitchener Rangers, OHL)
10 (CAN) - 0 (LAT)
The leading scorer in the OHL was able to do what he does best — score goals.
Rehkopf began this tournament as the 13th forward, but he was always "too" good to fill a depth role with not many offensive opportunities. Rehkopf can be a game changer, and that he was against Latvia. This game was never close either, but Rehkopf's elevated role to a line with Macklin Celebrini sparked his confidence.
He scored two goals — one of which was a tremendous individual effort to beat the defender wide, and cut to the middle to deke the goaltender. Rehkopf thrives in game-determining situations. If Canada's coaches keep putting him in situations where he can score, you can bet that he will.
3rd Star: Tomas Hamara, Czechia (Brantford Bulldogs, OHL)
8 (CZE) - 1 (NOR)
Another vital player in Czechia's bounce back game against Norway — Tomas Hamara. Hamara had plenty of opportunity to create and walk the blue line in this game, and he was able to grab two assists. Czechia has been using him as their power play quarterback, and they scored two PP goals while Hamara was on the ice.
Since being traded to Brantford from Kitchener in the OHL, Hamara has had a much wider stage to shine upon. He is playing on the first pair with fellow Senators prospect Jorian Donovan (playing for Canada at WJC). Hamara has also had some opportunities on the power play, and he has 8 points through 14 games with the new club.