CALGARY – Two-goal efforts by Tyler Toffoli and Phillip Danault carried Canada past the CIS All-Stars 7-4 Tuesday night at WinSport Arena in the final game of Team Canada's World Junior Selection Camp.
The CIS All-Star team was made up of members of the University of Calgary Dinos and University of Lethbridge Pronghorns. For Canada, it was the last opportunity for players to make an impression on the coaching staff before final cuts are made on Wednesday morning. Both teams' goaltending was performed by members of the selection camp to give Team Canada a better look at all four netminders.
The juniors jumped on the board first at the 5:15 mark as Nathan Beaulieu found Toffoli at the left side of the net where he beat a diving Scott Wedgewood to make it 1-0.
Team Canada got into some penalty trouble late in the opening frame which gave the CIS All-Stars the chance they needed. Dinos' forward
Brock Nixon got the ball rolling as he poked in the tying goal for the CIS while on the five-on-three. Just over a minute later, Lethbridge's Taylor Gal netted a power play goal as he tipped Brent Henke's point shot through Tyler Bunz. The CIS All-Stars led 2-1 after one period.
The middle frame was dominated by Canada as they were able to bombard the CIS net with four unanswered goals. Canada knotted the game when Beaulieu took a shifty pass from Cody Ceci and blasted the puck past Wedgewood on the man advantage at 3:57. Chicago Blackhawks prospect Danault would capitalize on a quick one-timed shot in the slot as Canada regained the lead.
Both goaltenders would take a seat at the half-way point of the game. Wedgewood made 18 saves in his appearance, while his counterpart Bunz denied four of six shots. Louis Domingue took over between the pipes for the CIS All-Stars, while last year's silver medalist Mark Visentin grabbed reigns for Canada.
Once play resumed, Danault introduced Domingue to the contest by scoring his second of the match at the 15:05 mark. 30 seconds later Michael Bournival gave the Canadians a 5-2 advantage which they carried into the intermission.
The CIS All-Stars made things interesting early in the third period when Nixon and Gal each recorded their second goals of the contest to cut Canada's lead to one.
The CIS comeback would be brought to a halt at 7:34 as Barrie Colt forward Tanner Pearson capitalized on a giveaway and buried a shot behind Domingue. Toffoli rounded out the scoring at the 15:36 mark as he notched his second to make it a 7-4 game.
Team Canada outshot the CIS All-Stars 49-19. Domingue made 24 out of a possible 28 saves in the second half of the game, while Visentin stopped 11 attempts.
The last time the Dinos and Pronghorns teamed up to play the World Junior hopefuls was 2006. That year, the university club beat Team Canada 5-4; it was the squad's only loss on their way to gold in Leksand, Sweden.
After making final cuts, Team Canada will begin pre-tournament action on Dec. 19 before beginning round robin play on Boxing Day against Finland in Edmonton.
The Dinos' Canada West season resumes on Jan. 6 as they host the first game of a home-and-home against the rival University of Alberta Golden Bears. Lethbridge also continues the regular season on Jan. 6 as they take on the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
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