TORONTO – Jack Eichel expects Team North America will have the fans at the Air Canada Centre behind them during the preliminary round games at the World Cup. It will be a strange sensation for the Massachusetts native, who's junior career featured intense showdowns with rival Canada.

"For the most part, I've never really been received well in Canada," the Buffalo Sabres centre said on Sunday morning. "But it's the same in America, they're rooting for their home country. But to join nations here and play as one, you know, I imagine the crowd will probably receive us well. It feels like the people around here, in general, are pulling for us. That's a nice feeling."

The feeling was much different a couple years ago when Eichel led Team USA into the World Junior Championship in Montreal. He faced boos in the Bell Centre, of course, but that's not what bothered Eichel the most.

"My family taking a lot (of heat) off the ice, trying to walk around in the streets and things like that. I think it's a little dramatic when people start insulting your family."

Eichel was asked if his family members, including then 21-year-old sister Jessie, were wearing a lot of USA gear, which perhaps attracted unwanted attention.

"I mean, I think my sister was, but how do you insult a girl, that's pretty pathetic," he said. "I don't know (about) things like that. But, that's hockey and I guess you got to deal with that. The people are fine. It's just a few people. I mean, I don't even know. I just know my family members told me it wasn't a great experience for them. I don't expect it to be anything like that here with us representing the continent of North America."

It's not just that Team North America features Canadian players. The team also includes a couple Maple Leafs in defenceman Morgan Rielly and first overall pick Auston Matthews, who was Eichel's teammate at the world juniors.

"He was their first overall pick and they haven't seen him yet so I imagine they're all pretty excited to watch," Eichel said. "I think, more than anything, he's going to be excited, a little anxious, a little nervous. I'm sure he'll play great. It's a great night for him and I imagine it will be one he'll never forget."

Perhaps it's fitting that the under-24 squad will get to use the Leafs dressing room for their opening game against Finland. Rielly said he liked some of the renovations made to the facility during the off-season. Matthews, meanwhile, is just soaking everything up.

"It's nice to kind of start early here and get acclimated and get that first game out of the way," the 19-year-old said. "It's going to be a good crowd. I think we got a lot of people behind us as a team, rooting for us."