Auston Matthews included on North America's 23-man World Cup roster
Auston Matthews will have an appropriately unique introduction to the NHL brand.
The projected No. 1 overall draft pick has been tabbed as one of the final selections for North America's roster at the upcoming World Cup of Hockey, meaning his first strides at Air Canada Centre will not be made with a Maple Leafs (or Jets) logo on his chest.
Here's the complete Team North America roster, with Friday's seven added selections in bold:
Goaltenders
John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
Matt Murray, Pittsburgh Penguins
Defensemen
Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers
Shayne Gostisbehere, Philadelphia Flyers *
Seth Jones, Columbus Blue Jackets
Ryan Murray, Columbus Blue Jackets
Colton Parayko, St. Louis Blues *
Morgan Rielly, Toronto Maple Leafs
Jacob Trouba, Winnipeg Jets *
Forwards
Sean Couturier, Philadelphia Flyers
Jonathan Drouin, Tampa Bay Lightning *
Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres
Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames
Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Auston Matthews, ZSC Lions *
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
J.T. Miller, New York Rangers
Sean Monahan, Calgary Flames
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton Oilers *
Brandon Saad, Columbus Blue Jackets
Mark Scheifele, Winnipeg Jets *
* added to roster Friday
The World Cup is set to take place from Sept. 17 to Oct. 1, with the young guns opening versus Team Finland.