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Growing up in a hurry is nothing new to Nick Paul. The Ottawa Senators prospect hit the fast forward button when he shot up by nine inches in his final year of midget hockey.

He didn’t stop there. Paul’s stature continues to rise as he represents the Connor McDavid-less Ontario Hockey League Thursday against a Russian all-star squad. The Subway Series game is being played in Peterborough.

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“It’s really exciting, playing with amazing players,” Paul said Wednesday during a pit stop on the drive from his OHL home in North Bay to Peterborough. “You don’t want to make mistakes, but once you get out there, you want to have fun and let your instincts take over, make good plays, deliver some hits.”

Paul, whom the Senators acquired along with Alex Chiasson and Alex Guptill in the Jason Spezza trade last summer, has had a strong start to his OHL season, with 14 goals and five assists in 16 games. That’s all come on the heels of his impressive showing at Canada’s world junior evaluation camp in August and at Senators training camp in September. He’s aiming to use Thursday’s game as a springboard to make Canada’s squad for the Christmas-New Year tournament.