Canada’s junior team beats university squad 2-0 in exhibition game

CALGARY – Hunter Shinkaruk and Ty Rattie scored for Canada’s junior team in a 2-0 win over a team of university players at selection camp Thursday.

It was the last chance for the players invited to selection camp to impress coach Steve Spott and his assistants. Eight players were to be released after the game and the 23-man Canadian team revealed.

Jordan Binnington stopped 19 of 21 shots in net for the university all-stars in his half of the game. Jake Paterson didn’t give up a goal on 11 shots in relief.

Laurent Broissoit and Malcolm Subban combined for a shutout in Canada’s net with 13 and nine saves respectively.

Paterson is the youngest of the four goalies invited to camp, but was the only one with a shutout through his three half-games at camp. The Saginaw Spirit netminder stopped 33 shots in total

Thirty-six players arrived Monday in Calgary to compete for jobs. They all had one practice and — for those who weren’t among the five released Wednesday — three games to earn a job on the team.

The NHL lockout made for stiff competition at camp as Canada is in the rare position of having its best under-20 players available for the upcoming world junior championship in Ufa, Russia.