ALLEN — Braeden Cootes had two goals and three assists, Cameron Schmidt added two goals and one assist and Canada cruised to a 9-2 win over Slovakia at the under-18 men's world hockey championship on Thursday. ALLEN — Braeden Cootes had two goals and three assists, Cameron Schmidt added two goals and one assist and Canada cruised to a 9-2 win over Slovakia at the under-18 men's world hockey championship on Thursday. Lev Katzin, Jackson Smith, Matthew Gard, Ryan Lin and Quinn Beauchesne also scored for the defending champion Canadians in the tournament opener. Jack Ivankovic made 22 saves in the win. Tomas Chrenko scored twice for Slovakia. Michal Pradel surrendered five goals on 16 shots before Samuel Hrenak came in for relief. Hrenak gave up four goals on 24 shots. Canada jumps right back into Pool A action on Friday against Latvia. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 24, 2025. The Canadian Press