This time last year, Canes fans were salivating over the possibility that a young Finn named Sebastian Aho would soon wear their colors. Aho racked up five goals and nine assists (14 points) to help Finland capture World Junior gold, ranking second in the tournament in scoring.
This year's tournament is yet another window into the Hurricanes' future, as four of the team's drafted prospects compete. First-round selections Jake Bean and Julien Gauthier, as well as 2015 fourth-round pick Nicolas Roy are all on the roster for the favored host nation of Canada. In addition, 2016 second-round selection Janne Kuokkanen is skating for the defending champions from Finland, following in the footsteps of fellow Carolina second-rounder Aho. All four players played integral roles in helping the Hurricanes win the 2016 NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City, MI, prior to the start of this season.
Roy's goal highlights opening win for Canada
While the Americans got to tune up with a 6-1 opening win against Latvia, the host nation started the tournament with a huge matchup against Russia. Bean, the second-youngest defensemen on Canada's roster, was paired with Canadiens prospect Noah Juulsen for the opener. Roy and Gauthier found themselves playing together, on a line with Avalanche first-rounder Tyson Jost.
Bean, who recently returned to action after missing nearly two months due to injury, has totaled 10 points (2g, 8a) in just eight games played for the Western Hockey League's Calgary Hitmen. Carolina's first-round selection, 13th overall, in the first round of the 2016 draft, Bean registered 18:45 of ice time against Russia. Bean fed Canadian captain Dylan Strome with a gorgeous stretch pass with 11 minutes remaining in the third period. Though Strome was thwarted on the breakaway, there's little doubt that Bean's pass had Bill Peters smiling in Raleigh.
Meanwhile, the Gauthier-Roy-Jost line continued its momentum after a solid pre-tournament slate.
Tweet from @mlse: The Roy-Gauthier-Jost line was dominant all night
Jost opened the scoring early in the first period for Canada. Roy and Gauthier got on the scoreboard late in the second frame, as Roy out-muscled a pair of Russian defenders before beating Russian netminder Ilya Samsonov to make it 3-1.
