Russian president Vladimir Putin now knows how dangerous Prince George hockey player Jeremy Gervais is with a stick in his hands.
Putin was in attendance Saturday at Junior Club World Cup opener in Sochi, Russia and watched Gervais and his Alberta Junior Hockey League selects play the opening game of the tournament against Loko Yaroslavl of Russia.
Gervais gave the AJHL a 2-0 lead when he took a cross-ice pass and scored a power-play goal 4:33 into the first period but Loko fired three unanswered goals for a 3-2 victory.
On Sunday, Carter Savoie of the Sherwood Park Crusaders scored a natural hat trick to complete the comeback in a 5-4 AJHL win over Modo of Sweden. Jordan Biro (Spruce Grove Saints) scored the first two goals for the AJHL, and they trailed 3-1 after one period.
The AJHL faces the Davos (Switzerland) under-20 team in its next game on Tuesday.
Gervais, a 20-year-old defenceman, is about to begin his second season in the AJHL for the Bonnyville Pontiacs after beginning his junior career in the BCHL with the Nanaimo Clippers.
His Pontiacs teammate, forward Daine Dubois of Williams Lake, is also in Russia playing for the AJHL team. Dubois, who turns 20 on Sept. 13, played two years of major midget hockey with Gervais in Prince George from 2015-17 with the Cariboo Cougars.
Gervais won the top defenceman award playing for Cariboo at the 2016 Telus Cup national midget championship.
The eight-team tournament wraps up on Saturday.
