HELSINKI - This was always going to be a challenge.
In previous years, Canada began the world junior championship against non-contenders like Belarus and Denmark, the equivalent to dipping your toe in a cold lake. This year, they had to jump right in and play the United States.
In some ways, it was a litmus test. The Americans, who are led by 2016 top draft prospect Auston Matthews, are considered one of the favourites to win this tournament. Canada is too. So playing them on Boxing Day — rather than on New Year’s Eve, as has typically been the tradition — allowed everyone to see where they stood.