TORONTO _ Blackhawks training camp begins Friday, but it might be some time before Marian Hossa arrives in Chicago.
The veteran winger helped Team Europe move a step closer to the medal round of the World Cup of Hockey with a 3-2 overtime victory over the Czech Republic on Monday at the Air Canada Centre.
The surprising Europeans _ a ragtag group from eight countries _ improved to 2-0 in Group A with one preliminary-round game remaining Wednesday against tournament favorite Canada.
"It's great for the confidence of our team," Hossa said of the win over the Czechs. "It feels good right now, but I know it's just the first two games and that doesn't guarantee anything."
Hossa logged 22 minutes, 3 seconds of ice time and recorded five shots on goal. At 37, he has embraced playing in the World Cup and sees it as a replacement for a standard NHL camp.
"This is a great training camp for us, playing against the world's best players," he said. "It's way different playing exhibition games against teams when there are new guys from the minors and teams are trying new guys instead of here, when you have the world-class players playing top-notch right from the beginning."
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