Wright, McTavish each score twice as Canada downs Belarus at U-18 championship

PLANO, Texas – Shane Wright and Mason McTavish scored two goals apiece as Canada capped a perfect preliminary round with a 5-2 win over Belarus at the world under-18 men’s hockey championship on Saturday.

Olen Zellweger also scored for Canada (4-0), which finished atop the five-team Group A.

Wright, a member of the Kingston Frontenacs, and McTavish, a Peterborough Pete, didn’t play for their normal teams this season as the Ontario Hockey League cancelled its season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Wright, the OHL rookie of the year in 2018-19 after being allowed into the league a year early as an exceptional-status player, missed the last two games at the worlds for undisclosed reasons.

Andrei Loshko and Ilya Morozov scored for Belarus, which split its four preliminary-round games.

Canada will face the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals on Monday.

Group B winner Finland meets Switzerland, Sweden squares off with the United States and Russia takes on Belarus in the other quarterfinals.

Canada hasn’t won the tournament since 2013.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 1, 2021.