2022 World Juniors: Perfetti looks to build upon three-point outing as Canada faces Austria

Winnipeg Jets prospect Cole Perfetti looked like a man on a mission on Boxing Day. The 19-year-old forward, who the Jets selected 10th overall in the 2020 NHL Draft, recorded three assists as Team Canada defeated Czechia by a 6–3 score on the opening day of the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship. In just one game, Perfetti managed to replicate half of his total scoring output total in seven contests at the 2021 tournament. Perfetti ranked sixth on a stacked Team Canada roster last year with six points (two goals, four assists). Since his time in the Ontario Hockey League with the Saginaw Spirit, Perfetti has been renowned as a terrific playmaker with soft hands. He put all of his considerable talent on display in Canada’s opener on Sunday, setting up both the game-tying and game-winning goals before recording another helper on Owen Power’s hat-trick tally. Perfetti’s most beautiful assist may have been his first. After taking a short feed from Connor Bedard in the neutral zone, Perfetti burst across the blu