Marco Kasper flourished during the second half of his rookie season with the Detroit Red Wings and has carried that strong play into the World Championship.
Kasper scored a pair of goals Friday to lead Austria past France 5-2 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Kasper, 21, logged 24:42, a staggering amount of ice time for a forward, and registered seven shots on goals and a plus-4 rating as Austria improved to 1-1-0-3 (W-OTW-OTL-L), good for five points.
Kasper leads Austria with four goals, five points, 17 shots on goal, a plus-5 rating and average ice time (20:25) in five games.
Kasper split the season between center and wing, thriving at both positions. He elevated his performance when Todd McLellan took over as coach. He led NHL rookies in goals (17) and was tied for fifth in points (30) after Christmas. He finished with 19 goals and 37 points in 77 games.