Team Canada looks strong -- the favourite for sure in the World Cup of Hockey, but not unbeatable -- after going through the exhibition series with a 2-1-0 record.

With four injury replacements, the Canadians are not at an optimal roster. Two of the replacements (Corey Perry for Jeff Carter, Jay Bouwmeester for Duncan Keith) have played their way up the lineup, earning coach Mike Babcock's trust.

The Americans are built to "beat" Canada, in a physical sense if not on the scoreboard.

The Russians proved in a 3-2 overtime loss they're at the same level. If the tournament is based on goaltending, Sergei Bobrovski could steal it.

As for the rest, we'll see. Canada starts the tournament on Saturday.

Here are some takeaways from an individual standpoint that I noticed through the training camp portion of the World Cup.

1. Auston Matthews is really good. We either knew this already, or simply wanted to believe it. But he was a force in every period in North America's loss to the Czechs. He has made an impression. Sidney Crosby had this to say about the Maple Leafs prospect, without even being asked about him:

"Look at Auston Matthews. He hasn't played a game in the NHL, and he's jumping right into the World Cup. That's not easy to do. You're not getting much of a warmup. The fact he played overseas and played with men has probably helped.

"That's quite a step he made. That's quite impressive what he's doing."

2. The Maple Leafs might truly have something in Nikita Zaitsev. The Russian defenceman -- signed as a free agent -- led all Russians in ice time (21:56) in their 3-2 overtime loss to Canada. He played all scenarios, including 4:48 of power play time and 2:00 killing penalties.

Here's what Mike Babcock had to say:

"We recruited him real hard. We think he's an important player for the Leafs going ahead. I like that they're putting him out there all the time. He must be a good player. Most coaches are pretty smart, like to win. So they play the players that help them do that. If he's important to them, that means he has a chance to be an important Leaf."

3. Carey Price is one calm, cool, collected dude. And he's back, good news for both Team Canada and the Montreal Canadiens. The Montreal media pepper Price with questions at every opportunity, looking for some nugget to measure how much better he feels, both physically and game-wise. Price seems more amused than put off by the intense line of questioning.

A sample of the questions and answers after Wednesday night's win:

Q: Do you feel better?

A: A lot better. Obviously the result was better. Felt a lot more comfortable overall.

Q: Do you see improvement in your game compared to last game?

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A: I think so. I definitely felt a lot more comfortable.

Q: How do you feel? Do you still have a few things to work on, or are you ready to go?

A: It's a never-ending process. I always feel like there something I can improve on. It's no different tonight. I felt better, but it wasn't a perfect game.

GOT A QUESTION? Email me at askkevinmcgran@gmail.com and I'll answer it in Friday's mailbag.

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