WJC day 3 recap: Poehling's turn to leave his mark

MONTREAL - Ryan Poehling, Cayden Primeau, and Team USA would have to do without number-one center Jack Hughes, missing in action with a minor injury, to take on Kazakhstan on the third day of the World Junior Championship.

Hughes' absence gave Poehling the chance to play a bigger offensive role for the American side and to get back to his natural position as a centerman.
And he seized the opportunity quite well, thank you very much.
After earning a helper on his team's first goal, Poehling was back at it again in the second, serving up a magnificent pass lobbed towards Alexander Chmelevski, who was manning the crease for Kazakhstan.
Not much later, with the United States down a man, Poehling was at it again, driving the puck into the Kazakh end, easily slipping by a defender and sliding the puck into a tiny opening given by the goalie.

By the time the United States had completed their 8-2 victory, Poehling had not only earned three points, but won 50% of his faceoffs and finished with a plus-2 differential. In 16:46 of ice time, he registered four shots on goal.
The game was also the first chance to see Habs hopeful Cayden Primeau in action in nets.
Primeau allowed a goal early in the game, but ended up stopping 11 of 13 shots he faced from Kazakhstan.
Czech Republic 1 - Russia 2
Following a three-point outing the day before against Denmark, Alexander Romanov continued to dazzle with his play.
He may not have gotten his name on the scoresheet in this one, but the 18-year-old defenseman pulled out some other tools from the old toolbox in a tightly fought contest between Russia and the Czech Republic which would finish in a 2-1 decision for Romanov and Co.
Romanov let his physical game lead the way - particularly in the second period, when he did not hesitate at all to throw his body around.
The physical side of his game also allowed Romanov to evade attempts to hit him by his opponents. Filip Zadina could confirm that for you, as he probably felt the impact the most with an attempted check on the young rearguard.
What's more, Russia's No. 26 continued to impress with his agility and mobility in both the offensive and defensive zones.
His night would finish on a sour note, however, as Romanov was hit by a puck directly in the face, although there was no apparent lasting impact from the incident.
Romanov and partner Alexander Alexeyev were their team's most-used defensive pairing, with Romanov seeing 22:37 of action. Once again, he did not shy away from using his shot and finished the game with four.
What's on tap for Saturday
Romanov will be the only Habs prospect not in action on the fourth day of competition, as Russia is off on Saturday.
Poehling and Primeau (if the latter is given a second start in as many days) are back, this time to take on Jacob Olofsson and Team Sweden.
Team Canada - featuring Canadiens hopefuls Nick Suzuki and Josh Brook - will battle the Czech Republic, while Jesse Ylonen and Finland square off against Slovakia.
Schedule of the day
Slovakia - Finland - 6:30 p.m. ET (TSN app)
Canada - Czech Republic - 8:00 p.m ET (TSN 1/3/4 and RDS)
Sweden - United States - 10:30 p.m. ET (TSN 3 and RDS)