Team Canada picked up from where it left off last year, defeating Latvia 16-0 on Saturday in their first game of the 2010 IIHF World Junior Championship.

The reigning world champions outshot their opponents 66-10 at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon.

Star winger Gabriel Bourque led Canada with three goals and four assists, while teammate and Maple Leaf draft pick Nazem Kadri added a pair of goals.

"Yeah, that's the biggest game of my career," the 19-year-old Nashville Predators prospect said after his first hat trick in junior hockey. "I'm so excited. I can't do better than that."

Bourque, who was traded earlier this week to Moncton from Baie-Comeau, was considered a long shot to make the team, but he caught the coaches' eyes at a summer orientation camp and impressed again at a tryout camp two weeks ago in Regina.

Everything went his way in his first game at the world juniors playing on a line with captain Patrice Cormier of the Rimouski Oceanic, who had two goals and two assists, and Brandon Kozun of the Calgary Hitmen, who scored twice and had three helpers.

"We had a joke after the second period when we asked if his dad was the scorekeeper," said Cormier. "But he's a hard worker and he played well."

"I play against him in Rimouski and he's a guy you want on your team. He works his butt off every shift. He deserves it."

Team Canada's 16 goals was the most they had scored since an 18-3 win over Poland in 1986, while Bourque equalled the team mark of seven points in a game set in 1983 by Dave Andreychuk and tied in 2001 by Mike Cammalleri.

Coach Willie Desjardins said Bourque played his way onto the team.

"I like the style he plays," said Desjardins. "He wasn't a lock in camp.

"We wondered where he'd fit in. I don't expect him to be like that every game, but he's a really good two-way hockey player."

Desjardins is pretty sure the games will get tougher from now on as well.

"We have to realize that it was one game and Latvia had a bad game," he said.

The Latvians beat Russia 3-2 in overtime in a pre-tournament game this week in Swift Current, Sask., but they were overwhelmed by Canada's high-paced, physical style.

Jake Allen of the Montreal Juniors hockey club earned the shutout, turning away 10 shots.

There is no mercy at the world juniors, where goal differential in the preliminary round can be a key tie-breaker to reach the single-game elimination stage next week. At last year's tournament in Ottawa, Canada opened with an 8-1 win over the Czechs and then beat Kazakhstan 15-0.

Only 36 seconds into the game, a Ryan Ellis point shot was tipped in by Bourque.

Kadri was at the back door to put in a Taylor Hall pass at 4:22 and Bourque was in front to convert a Greg Nemisz feed at 6:39 as Canada scored two quick power-play goals.

After Canada scored three times in the opening 6:39, coach Andrejs Maticins opted to spare starter Raimonds Ermics further punishment and went with backup goalie Janis Kalnins the rest of the way.

"After that, something changed," said Maticins. "We started thinking about the next game.

"That's a big problem. I understand Canada's a good team, but sometimes you think about the next game, or about our game against Switzerland, which is very important to us."

The onslaught continued in the second as Eberle finished a two-on-one with McMillan at 4:49, Hamonic scored from the high slot at 9:28 and Kadri completed a two-on-one with Hall at 10:26.

Kozun and Eberle scored power-play goals late in the period and with less than three seconds left, Henrique went in alone to score.

Comrier got his second of the game on a rush 1:33 into the third, McMillan got a power-play goal at 4:35 and Kozun, who had five points, got his second at 9:19.

A Bourque pass went in off a skate at 18:28 for Canada's sixth power-play goal of the game and Adam added one with 28 seconds left to play.

It wasn't an overly physical game, but Kadri was sent off with a minor for checking from behind and a 10-minute misconduct after he knocked down Edgars Ulescenko behind the Latvia net in the first period.

Canada will face Switzerland in round-robin action on Monday.