Canada's cutdown process heats up with game vs. U Sports All-Stars on TSN+
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Team Canada's World Juniors selection camp will heat up on Thursday with a game against U Sports All-Stars in Ottawa.
Canada is expected to cut down its roster later this week, with 33 players attending selection camp and only 25 to make the team's tournament roster.
You can watch the game LIVE on TSN+ at 3pm ET/Noon PT .
After falling in the quarter-finals to Czechia at the World Juniors in January, Canada has set a competitive tone for selection camp, expressing that none of the returning seven players are guaranteed a spot.
"You can't take it for granted," added Brayden Yager, who had two goals and five points in five games at the 2024 World Juniors. "You gotta earn everything you get.
"Part of the message is we're not building an all-star team. Everybody's got a ton of skill to win this tournament. You've got to have players that can play roles. You can't take it for granted."
Thursday's game will mark the first of two games against the U Sports athletes, with the second coming Friday in what could be the final opportunity for players on the bubble to make their case.
"Their job is to make my job and or our job difficult," head coach Dave Cameron said of the players attending selection camp. "It's a hard team to make … don't take anything for granted."
Friday's second game against the U Sports All-Stars will be LIVE on TSN+ at Noon ET/9am PT.
While the roster for Thursday's game has not been announced, Canada will be without London Knights star and Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan, as well as Carolina Hurricanes first-round pick Bradly Nadeau, who both appear set to make the team. Cowan is being held out of selection camp as a precaution after taking a being shaken up in his final game with the Knights before camp last week. Nadeau will join the team after selection camp but has already been given his place on the roster after posting five goals and 12 points in in 20 games with the AHL's Chicago Wolves this season.
"Real good player playing at the (AHL) level," Cameron said of the 19-year-old winger. "We expect him to be big contributor in this team."
Cowan skated on Wednesday in a non-contact jersey and was back on the ice Thursday morning. Cole Beaudoin, who left practice Wednesday with a hand issue, was also back on the ice.
The majority of the players taking part in Thursday's morning skate will not dress in the game later. Beaudoin, however, left the ice early and appears set to play against the U Sports All-Stars.
The other forwards on the ice this morning included Calum Ritchie, Tanner Howe, Yager, Mathieu Cataford and Cowan at forward. On defence, Oliver Bonk, Matthew Schaefer, Tanner Molendyk and Beau Akey were on the ice and will not dress this afternoon.
Canada held two practices on Wednesday morning and a scrimmage in evening, getting the first look at potential line combinations after weather conditions pushed back the start of camp by a day. Beaudoin did not take part after the morning issue.
Canada is focused on capturing gold at the World Juniors for the third time in four years, with the lament of finishing off the podium for first time since 2019 still hanging over them.
"We could have been more competitive," Hockey Canada's senior vice-president of high performance Scott Salmond said earlier this week. "If you want to play, we need skilled guys, we need fast guys, we need competitive guys.
"We want a real Canadian team. We want to have a Canadian identity."
The World Juniors start Boxing Day, when Canada will open with a tough test against Finland in Group A.
You can watch every game of the 2025 World Junior Championship LIVE on TSN, TSN.ca and the TSN App.