Rousseau, St-Hilaire split net as Canada aims to build chemistry

Team Canada skated at the Limhamn Arena in Malmo, Sweden on Tuesday morning ahead of an exhibition game against an under-25 team from Denmark. 

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Mathis Rousseau is expected to start on Tuesday as Canada plays the first of three tune-up games ahead of the World Juniors. It will be the first time the Halifax Mooseheads goalie wears the maple leaf in international competition. 

"I can't wait," he said. "It's something I've dreamed of all my life."

The 19-year-old from Boisbriand, Que. has certainly earned the opportunity. He leads the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League with a .934 save percentage. 

The international stage, though, brings additional pressure. 

"I'm fine with that," Rousseau assured. "The playoffs last year were pretty big in Quebec with 18,000 people in the rink. For sure, it's something else, a bigger step, but I think I'll be able to manage."

Rousseau backstopped the Mooseheads all the way to the QMJHL championship series last year. And yet he was still passed over in the National Hockey League draft. Rousseau blames his 5-foot-11 frame for keeping teams away. 

"Sometimes it gets annoying that the only excuse is your size," he said. "It's helped me get where I am now because it pushed me. It kind of helped me in a certain way."

"He's 5-foot-11 physically, but between his ears he's like seven feet tall," said Team Canada goalie consultant Justin Pogge. "He's mentally strong. Really, really mentally strong."

Rousseau describes his confidence as "pretty high" these days. Teammates are feeding off his passion. 

"He's so competitive," noted Drummondville Voltigeurs defenceman Maveric Lamoureux. "He hates to lose. He hates to get scored on. You'll see him after, and he'll be angry and play even better after. So, a goalie like that on your team that's so competitive and hates to lose is really good."

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Samuel St-Hilaire will split time with Rousseau on Tuesday when Canada takes on a team of under-25 players from Denmark. The Sherbrooke Phoenix goalie is also undrafted and also making his international debut. The late bloomer only broke into the QMJHL last season. 

"Two years ago I was playing midget triple A," St-Hilaire said. "I was just thinking about making the QMJHL. I was never talking about being here. So, honestly, it means everything. It's an honour and a privilege to be here."

St-Hilaire is third in the QMJHL with a .920 save percentage this season. 

"I'm very proud about Sammy," said assistant coach Gilles Bouchard, who runs the bench in Sherbrooke. "The process is very good for him. He's working hard. He's got good size. He's got good feet, and his hockey sense is very good. He knows what is going on around him all the time, so he can anticipate the play. It's one of his strengths as a goalie."

It was after seeing St-Hilaire play a handful of games last season that Bouchard reached out to Pogge. 

"I was in my office and thinking, 'You know what? This goalie is very good.' He's got very good tools," Bouchard recalled. "So, I started the process talking with Justin and after that he ended up here. So, I'm very happy."

"In the two last summers I was the guy that worked the hardest in the gym and on the ice," St-Hilaire said of his rise. "It's about that." 

At 6-foot-2, St-Hilaire is Canada's tallest goalie. 

"With the group that we have he's got a little bit more size to him, so it's nice to have that in your back pocket," Pogge said. "He reads the game so well and he's very cerebral when he plays. He makes it look easy."

St-Hilaire got a boost from attending summer development camp with the Toronto Maple Leafs and then training camp with the Boston Bruins. What did he learn? 

"Just being calm," he said. "Being myself is pretty much it. When I saw the other goalies, maybe at the beginning I was trying to be like them and everything, but I just had to play my game. Going there and being at the pro level and seeing the guys and how mature they were and everything, I learned a lot from it."

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Alan Letang isn't worried about the lack of international experience in net. 

"Justin's pretty confident in their abilities," Canada's head coach said. "They've looked good in practice. Rousseau's super quick. St-Hilaire's got that calming influence and doesn't need to move a whole lot in the net, good positionally."

And if either 19-year-old stumbles, Seattle Thunderbird Scott Ratzlaff is ready to step up. He went 4-0-0 with a .976 save percentage for Canada en route to a gold medal at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. 

"He's out here having fun," Pogge said. "He's the youngest guy of the three [18] and every day he's got a smile on his face and it's a pleasure to see."

Ratzlaff has an .889 save percentage in the WHL this season. 

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Pogge is returning to the World Juniors for the first time since helping Canada win the gold medal in Vancouver in 2006. 

"I'm so honoured to be a part of Hockey Canada again on a different side," he said. "I'm enjoying every minute of it so far."

What does he remember about his World Juniors experience? 

"I blacked out the last game," he said with a smile. 

Pogge stopped all 35 shots he faced in the championship game against Russia. It was one of three shutouts he had while starting all six games for Canada at the event. 

"The whole experience of playing in front of your country and wearing that maple leaf is the highlight of my career," Pogge said.

How did he deal with the pressure? 

"Pepto-Bismol and Pedialyte," he said. "I should've continued doing that my whole career." 

Pogge guzzled the stomach-stabilizing fluids before games, but he's not suggesting today's teenagers follow that recipe. 

"You know what? Nerves are good," he said. "You play the best games when you're a little nervous. You get that adrenaline going and as soon as the puck drops it's just like every other game, you just got to play it. Play every shot like a new shot and have a short memory."

Pogge got into seven games for the Maple Leafs in the 2008-09 season but spent most of his career overseas playing in Italy, Sweden and Germany. That experience on the big ice will be especially helpful for Canada's current crop of goalies. 

"He's got experience internationally playing pro so he can help me adjust with reading the game a little bit," Rousseau said. 

"Patience is key," Pogge advised. "It's a wider ice, so the shots from the wall aren't so dangerous and you have more time than you think on the international ice."

Pogge has already been part of Team Canada's staff at a couple international events, including the World Championship and Hlinka Gretzky Cup. He's embracing life as a coach. 

"I get to have fun on the ice," Pogge said of coaching. "I'm actually working on my hands." 

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Boston Bruins centre Matt Poitras, who was loaned to Hockey Canada on Monday, skated with the team for the first time. 

"I'm just running on adrenaline right now," he said. "It's just felt like a really long day, honestly. I haven't really slept."

"He's super excited," said Letang. "He's never been in a Hockey Canada program before, so it's a chance of a lifetime for him to come in and enjoy this ... He gives us some centre depth and allows us to be a little bit more creative on the power play. He's a kid who's responsible defensively and can generate offence so, yeah, we're real excited." 

Poitras will not play on Tuesday but is expected to be in the lineup on Friday when Canada takes on the Swiss. 

"A couple familiar faces, but a lot of new faces," the 19-year-old from Brooklin, Ont. said. "So just introducing myself and getting to know everybody’s name is the first thing."

"Everybody was excited to meet him," said Peterborough Petes centre Owen Beck. "I played against him growing up, so had an idea what he's like. Just a great two-way centre, does everything right, very smart. I think he had about a million assists last year. He'll be a great playmaker for us."

Poitras had 79 assists in 63 games with the Guelph Storm last season. 

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After four practice days, the players are eager to faceoff with another team. 

"Normally when you're back in junior you're playing games every weekend, so it feels like I haven't played a game in forever," Beck said. "Really looking forward to this one."

The coaching staff will experiment with some different looks, but they don't want to go over the top.  

"The biggest thing is finding that chemistry with the lines," Letang said. "We don't want to shuffle them too much."

A capacity crowd of around 600 is expected for the game in Malmo. 

"We want to play with some pace, use our speed, and I want them to enjoy it," said Letang. "Grab the energy. Grab the chemistry and just build from there."

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Lines at Team Canada's morning skate on Tuesday:

Cowan - Geekie - Savoie 

Minten - Celebrini - Dumais 

Rehkopf - Yager - Wood

Allard - Beck - Danielson 

Mateychuk - Lamoureux 

Furlong - Bonk

Molendyk - Warren 

Rousseau 

St-Hilaire

Ratzlaff

Absent: Luneau 

Roster for the Denmark U25 team: 

FORWARDS 

6 Anton Linde 

8 Jacob Schmidt-Svejstrup

11 Albert Schioldan 

14 Mikkel Binou Jensen 

15 David Madsen

17 Anders Weltz Wollenberg Biel

18 Mathias Borring Hansen

19 Oliver True

22 Christopher Alexander Rübenach

24 Hjalte Thomsen

27 Mathias Lehmann Hansen 

DEFENCE 

5 Victor Schmidt Nielsen 

7 Jerry Välipirtti

12 Anton Als

13 Lasse L. Carlsen

23 Valdemar Ahlberg

25 Daniel Baastrup-Andersen

GOALIES

1 William Rørth

32 David Grubak