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SPORTSCENTRE Reporter

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There are three contenders for Team Canada's starting goalie job at the World Juniors and each one can make a compelling case to be between the pipes on Boxing Day. 

Prince George's Taylor Gauthier has a gold medal win at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup on his resume. Northeastern University's Devon Levi was the MVP of the 2019 World Junior A Challenge. ​Kamloops' Dylan Garand was selected in the fourth round by the New York Rangers in October making him the top National Hockey League draft pick among the group.

The trio of 'tenders sat down with TSN for a virtual round table this week from their hotel rooms in Edmonton. They talked about their style of play, favourite goalies growing up and how they handle pressure.

TSN: How would you describe your style?

GAUTHIER: "When I was younger I was a little more free flowing. I relied on my athletic ability a little more than some other goalies, but over the last couple years I've really dialed in my technical side. I still have that athleticism in my back pocket when I need it, but I'​m trying to rely on my technique and make the easy save as much as possible."

GARAND: "I like to rely on my technique and structure. It's how I play and what I'm comfortable with. I'm good at tracking pucks and my hands are good as well and I have some athletic ability if I need to use it."

LEVI: "I'm a smart goalie, good at reading plays. I have my athletic ability and my technical game in my back pocket for when I need it. Like Dylan said, tracking is a big part of the game now and my tracking ability is pretty strong."

TSN: What's your game-day routine?

LEVI: "I have a whole set routine that's three and a half hours ... First, I like to get my body warmed up with a lot of stretching to make sure I don't go out there and pull a groin. I like to be loose. I like to be able to move quick so I do a lot of stretching and activation. Part two is getting my eyes ready with the hand-eye drills and tracking drills. Part three is getting my mind ready with visualization, meditation and just calming down before the game and tapping into the enjoyment of the game." 

GARAND: "As soon as I get to the rink I do some ball work to get my eyes going and stuff like that and then do the foam roller and stretch to get my body ready. And then, just before the game, I like to visualize and get your mind in the right state so you can go out and perform. So, not superstitious but I definitely have a routine that I stick to every game."

GAUTHIER: "Nothing like either of those guys. Get to the rink and like to sit in the room and chat with the guys, sing a little bit of music and then just go through the day like a normal player. The only thing I do a little extra is right before I get dressed I take five minutes to really get loose and stretch everything out and then just throw the gear on and go out for warm-up. I try not to have a bunch of stuff I need to do before every game. I used to do that and be superstitious, but it got hard to follow and if something happens that you can't control and you can't do one of your routines I found it kind of messed with my head so I just kind​ scrapped everything and just go with the flow."

TSN: What's the key to handling pressure?

GAUTHER: "The big thing for me is understanding that there are a lot of things that you can't control whether it's inside the game or what others are saying or thinking about you. At the end of the day you're trying to stop the puck and the simpler you can make the game for yourself and the team, the easier it is to just go out and have fun and do your job."

LEVI: "I love tapping into my love of the game. I just go out and play the game that I love. I'm having fun and if a goal goes in I just concentrate on stopping the next puck ... what helps me with that a bit is just breathing techniques. I concentrate on my breath in between whistles if I'm ever feeling off and concentre on feeling in the moment and feeling grounded and enjoying the moment." 

GARAND: "If you're having nerves or whatever, it's good to have the awareness and being accepting of them and embracing the pressure and enjoying it. It's good to take a different perspective and think where would you rather be? Would you rather be in this moment feeling this pressure or being at home and not playing at all? I think pressure is privilege."

TSN: Who's a goalie you admired growing up? 

GARAND: "I always looked up to Carey Price. I had a poster in my room and stuff like that. I just thought he was so cool and so good and stuff like that … that was my guy growing up."

LEVI: "Carey Price was definitely my idol growing up in Montreal. I could watch him all day and not get bored. It's unbelievable. I had the chance to meet him as a kid ... I gave him a bunch of stuff to sign (laughs). He was eating lunch so we didn't have a [long] talk, but just being in his presence was unreal."

​GAUTHIER: "It's a little bit off the board, but growing up going to Calgary Hitmen games it was Justin Pogge. Just watching him and seeing how he was always the main attraction was something I thought of a lot when I was younger. I remember going home and sitting in my living room and my dad throwing tennis balls at me and I'd have my baseball glove on and I had a Hitmen jersey on and I used to tape 'Pogge' on the back and pretend I was him. It's not a huge name or anything, but​ he was a really big influence in inspiring me to play the position. He played in the World Juniors as well so it's kind of come full circle."

TSN: What shooters on Team Canada have impressed you?

GARAND: "Connor McMichael has had my number. I think I've only stopped a couple of his shots. It's frustrating, but he's got a sweet shot. His release is different than other guys with the way he pulls it in and shoots it the other way. That kind of throws you off a bit."

LEVI: "I've been on the ice a lot with [Alex] Newhook and [Dylan] Holloway. We were the NCAA guys and we had to skate by ourselves for two weeks … Newhook's super smart and he likes picking corners, too, and he's a really smart player. He knows where to shoot. And Holloway's just got a bomb."

GAUTHIER: "Jack Quinn. There's a reason he scored 52 last year in the OHL. His release is pretty hard to read and whenever you can follow up a hard release with a hard shot it's a deadly combination. He's put a couple by me. He's just an unreal player and dangerous everywhere on the ice."

TSN: Anyone stand out in the shootout work you did over the weekend?

GAUTHIER: "It seemed like everyone was scoring. They had some shootout presentation that we couldn't watch. We were all kind of struggling with it. At least they're scoring and we're getting their confidence up."

GARAND: "Like Goats said, it seemed like everyone was scoring, but two guys stood out for me. First one was Jack Quinn. He's got a good fake. I kept biting on him so he scored on me a​ lot. Another guy, a pretty obvious choice, is Cole Perfetti. I played with him at the Hlinka tournament and you're probably pretty familiar with what he did there. I faced him at the Top Prospects Game too and I think he scored six in a row on me there so it's always a challenge to face him in the shootout. He's definitely got a knack for it."

LEVI: "We started picking up what was going on in that presentation. Like, all the players are going outside the dots and then back inside the dots and trying to make our net feel like a soccer net so we picked up on that and made adjustments. We were coming out a bit later so once they hit the dots then we're coming out to challenge. Patience, for me, is a big part of shootouts so just not biting on plays and waiting for the player to make the first move. When I do bite I have pretty solid athleticism to fall back on so I'm still able to make a desperate save."

GARAND: "When I was younger in bantam and midget I used to be unreal at the shootout and then as you get older guys get smarter and figure it out so it's definitely a bit tougher. Patience is key and just reacting to what they do, like Devon said."

GAUTHIER: "I've only won like three in my career. I'm usually pretty good at them, but it's just unfortunate that we don't score a lot [in Prince George] so we end up losing quite a few of them. But I'm feeling good in them. I kind of made some adjustments over the last couple days before we moved up to Edmonton so I'm feeling pretty confident in the shootout."