Pascal Laberge and David Quenneville scored first-period goals to lead Canada past Finland 3-1 at the world men’s under-18 hockey tournament in North Dakota on Tuesday.

Tyson Jost had the other goal for Canada (4-0), which secured top spot in Group B with the win.

Evan Fitzpatrick was solid in Canada’s goal, stopping 26 of 27 shots he faced.

Canada will face Switzerland in the quarters on Thursday afternoon.

The Canadian entry includes four local players – Connor Hall (Cambridge/Kitchener Rangers), Nick Hague (Kitchener/Mississauga Steelheads, Boris Katchouk (Waterloo/Soo Greyhounds) and Logan Stanley (Waterloo/Windsor Spitfires).

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with files from The Canadian Press