Garand brings 'extreme focus' to Team Canada's net

Team Canada's scratches skated at the Downtown Community Arena on Thursday. 

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Dylan Garand is looking for a better start to the summer World Juniors. 

"It didn't go the way I wanted it to on Boxing Day, but it was a good experience to have that under my belt," the Kamloops Blazers goalie said. "Now, coming back, I've played my first game, so there's nothing new here for me."

Czechia built a 3-1 lead over Canada in the first period back on Dec. 26.  

"They scored three quick ones, and it was kind of a little frantic for me," Garand recalled. 

Coach Dave Cameron called timeout to settle the team down after the third goal.

"I remember thinking to myself to relax a bit and stick to my game," Garand said. "Just because I've been scored on, I'm not going to change anything or do anything different. Just stick to the process and when I do that it gives me confidence."

Garand shut the door the rest of the way as Canada stormed back to win 6-3.

Garand, who will make his second career World Junior start on Thursday, has turned being routine-oriented into an art form. 

"He has his set times where he likes to stretch," said centre Logan Stankoven, who plays with Garand in Kamloops. "He has everything planned and it's always at certain times. That's big for him, just his key times when he has to do certain things. It always has to be at the certain times."

Garand appears to be eccentric even by goalie standards. 

"Extreme focus," said Everett defenceman Olen Zellweger. "It starts way before you're even at the rink. I've seen him in the meal room here looking at the floor and doing [visualization]." 

"There's one story that's pretty funny," said Halifax forward Elliot Desnoyers. "This winter he was with [Xavier] Bourgault in his room and he was meditating in the closet by himself. He was maybe looking for a quiet place, which is totally understandable."

Whatever Garand does, it's working. He was named the Canadian Hockey League goalie of the year last season and looked locked in while stopping all 15 shots faced in Monday's pre-tournament game against Sweden. 

"It's hard to find flaws, to be quite honest with you," said Team Canada assistant coach Michael Dyck, who saw his Vancouver Giants get eliminated by Garand and the Blazers in the Western Hockey League playoffs. "He's technically sound. He competes hard and I think he's mentally strong. He gives you a lot of confidence when he's in the net." 

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Connor Bedard opened the scoring for Canada in Wednesday's win over Latvia. Considering the expectations on the 17-year-old forward at the tournament, it was nice to get the first one out of the way. 

"It always feels good to score, especially that first one of the tournament," Bedard said. "It's always exciting whoever gets it, so it definitely felt good, and it was cool to go into the corner and see some fans there."

The Regina Pats phenom had missed a great chance moments before scoring and made some mental notes. 

"I got it in the slot there from [Mason McTavish] and I pulled it and I saw the goalie went over pretty far and low glove opened up," Bedard said. "I missed it. Going in [the next time], I kind of knew where I wanted to go and how he'd react to that shot."

If you give Bedard too many chances, you're going to get burned.  

"He's so good at changing angles with his shot," observed Slovak assistant coach Scott Moser. "I think, for our D, stick on puck completely through his release is important."

That's easier said than done. 

"His shot, you never know when it's going to come," said Everett defenceman Ronan Seeley, who played a team high 21:05 against Latvia.

Bedard, who stands 5-foot-9, uses a longer stick than most players his size. 

"I skate a little upright and it's good for me to have my stick on the ice more," he explained. "Even for shooting, [it's good for] reaching it out more or whatever. It's a personal preference and how I've always had it."

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Bedard's shot is an incredible weapon, but it can also be a good decoy.

That was the case on the power play on Wednesday. Bedard drew in a Latvian player on the flank and made a no-look pass to Everett defenceman Olen Zellweger, who scored in the second period. 

"His shot is such a threat, so they'll be favouring him there," noted Zellweger, "which will open up the pass to the point."

Zellweger still had to get his shot through a maze of players. 

"I saw the [closest] guy had no stick, so I thought I could get it through there," he said. 

Zellweger led all WHL defencemen with 78 points in 55 games last season. His ability to get shots through from the point is a big reason why. 

"He has the ability to do that with his footwork," said Dyck, who oversees the Team Canada power play. "He's able to open up seams by moving his feet and bringing guys into position where they get down and try to block shots and then he finds lanes to get shots through."

Charlottetown defenceman Lukas Cormier also scored on the power play as Canada found some rhythm after a poor first opportunity. 

"We had gone through a period of time on offence at five-on-five and we got too comfortable," Cameron noted. "We thought it would be easy and that carried over to the power play." 

"First one, they did well, and they were pressuring us and caused some turnovers," Bedard said. "Our goals were simple shots from the point. Simplifying it was good for us." 

Bedard and Kent Johnson flipped flanks on the top unit after Canada failed to generate a shot on the first chance. 

"An adjustment to create more shots," Dyck said. "We were looking for that seam play too much. We want more shots on net and having those guys running down on their forehand creates that opportunity." 

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Like Bedard, Dalibor Dvorsky is projected to be a top pick in the 2023 National Hockey League draft.

The Slovak centre, who produced 40 points in 33 games in Sweden's junior league last season, lists Washington's Nicklas Backstrom and Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby as his hockey role models. 

"I love Backstrom's hockey sense, and his passing is really good," Dvorsky said. "Crosby's protecting the puck and his overall game, I like. He's one of the best ever, so I love to watch him."

Dvorsky picked up an assist in Slovakia's opening-game loss to Czechia. 

"He's just such a smart player," said Moser. "People that really appreciate the game of hockey will fall in love with his style of play and how he thinks his way through the game. He's so cerebral. He's a hockey nut. He always wants to know how he can get better. He always wants to take faceoffs after practice. I think he's running at 70 per cent by our numbers right now through these first three games, if you count the pre-tournament games."

How does he dominate on draws? 

"I don't want to give away too many secrets, but he's a strong kid for his age," said Moser. "That's really stood out to me. Just his forearms and his strength on his stick and then he's also really good at reading other centres. It's something that he studies and puts time into and it's fun to work with him on it."

Despite enjoying a positive day at the dot, Dvorsky wasn't happy with his game against Czechia. 

"My whole line, we need to be more in the offensive zone and creating chances there," the 17-year-old said. "We weren't good enough in the last game." 

What needs to improve?

"Our passes. We tried to play too complicated. We have to play more simple to get to the offensive zone." 

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Bedard's blast set the tone on Wednesday, but Brandon centre Ridly Greig stole the show with his one-handed goal. 

"It just looked cooler than two," the Ottawa Senators prospect cracked when asked why he went with that move. "The tracker was right on me, so I just tried to get it on with one."

Greig used his free hand to hold off the defender. 

The play reminded Bedard of the shootout goals scored by Columbus Blue Jackets forward Alexandre Texier. 

"It was sick," said Bedard. "I didn't know what he was going to do there, obviously, with one hand on his stick and that was pretty creative. It was cool to see it go in. It takes a lot of top-hand strength." 

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Acadie-Bathurst's Riley Kidney and Winnipeg's Carson Lambos skated this morning and project to be healthy scratches against Slovakia. 

Flint's Brennan Othmann and Mississauga's Ethan Del Mastro are expected to draw in.