Byfield: Scoring 1st goal at world juniors 'was a big relief'

Quinton Byfield is feeling a big sense of relief after scoring his first-ever goal at the world juniors Tuesday.

"It definitely helps quite a bit. I hadn't scored a world juniors goal, so, it was definitely in the back of my mind ..." Byfield said postgame, via TSN. He added that scoring Tuesday "definitely relieved some pressure."

Byfield registered just one assist in seven games for Canada during last year's tournament. He wasn't able to find twine through two games this year, either.

But the 18-year-old broke through big time versus Switzerland. Byfield recorded two goals and four assists in Canada's dominant 10-0 victory.

"A goal is a goal, really, but ... going through last year's tournament without a goal definitely hurt a little bit. You want to contribute as much as you can," Byfield said. "Finally getting that, I definitely feel like I'm contributing and I'm a bigger part of the team, so, I think it was a big relief."

Byfield didn't have difficulty finding the back of the net in the OHL, as he netted 61 goals in 109 games with the Sudbury Wolves over the past two seasons. Byfield was taken by the Los Angeles Kings with the second overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft.