BUFFALO - - In 2009 the Finnish Ice Hockey Association noticed it was falling behind Canada, Sweden, Russia and the United States in producing elite hockey talent.

The federation held a summit at the Sports Institute in Vierumaki, Finland inviting agents, scouts, national team coaches and club team coaches to devise a plan to solve the issue.

As a result of the meeting, the federation hired four full-time national team coaches to work with the nation’s top players.

View photos Finland poses for a team photo at the IIHF World Junior Championship in Helsinki, Finland on Tuesday, Jan 5, 2016. Finland defeated Russia 4-3 in sudden-death overtime. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT More

Since 2009, Finland has won a gold, silver and bronze medals at the IIHF U18 World Championship. At the Under-20 tournament, the Finns have taken home a gold medal twice in the last three years, and at the senior level Finland has won a gold and two silvers in the past six tournaments. The Finns have also taken home a bronze medal in each of the last two Olympics.

Later this month, at the NHL Draft, three Finns are expected to be selected within the top 15 picks, including two in the top five.

“I think now we have good coaches on our junior teams and junior national teams of course,” said Patrik Laine. “I think those guys have maybe more focus on teaching every player more than a couple years ago. I think that's important and we have good confidence as a country in those tournaments. We know we can beat anybody.”

Laine, a left-winger, leads the Finnish contingent in the rankings. ISS Hockey has the 18-year-old as the second overall pick behind only Auston Matthews.

The six-foot-three, 200-pound forward, who played professionally for his hometown Tappara this season, has been doing his best to close the gap between himself and Matthews. At the worlds last month, Laine led the Finns in scoring with seven goals and five assists in 10 games – three more points than his American counterpart.

“I think I have the best ability to someday become the best player in the NHL,” Laine said following testing at the NHL Scouting Combine. “Maybe other top guys are good at everything and they don't have that kind of one thing that they're very good at and I think I have that.”

In comparing himself to Matthews, Laine admitted it’s a pretty close race.

“I think we're quite even and he's better than me in some stuff and I'm better than him some of the things,” Laine said. “I think we're quite even and Toronto will have a tough decision to make. I think I have a better shot and ability to score goals and I think I'm more physical than him.”

Laine is also seven months younger than Matthews, a time period he feels he can further improve on the Scottsdale, Arizona native.

“(It’s) a long time and I think if he's better than me in some things I would catch him during those (seven) months,” Laine said. “I don't know if that gives (me) some advantage. I think his ability to create chances with his line mates and he can score also obviously, and he has good hands and he's good at protecting the puck. I think he's quite good at every zone on the ice.”

When asked which current NHLers he’d compare Matthews and himself to, Laine was bold.

“I think I would be (Alex) Ovechkin and he would (Jonathan) Toews,” he said.

View photos SAN JOSE, CA - JUNE 06: (L-R) Top Prospects Alexander Nylander, Patrik Laine, Matthew Tkachuk, Auston Matthews and Pierre-Luc Dubois pose prior media availability for the 2016 NHL Draft Top Prospects ahead of Game Four of the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Final at SAP Center on June 6, 2016 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) More

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