Canada are rated 10th in the world, some 14 places higher than their opponents.

The Welsh went 2-0 up through James Carson and Luke Hawker, before Iain Smythe pulled one back for Canada at the National Hockey Stadium.

Joseph Naughalty made sure of victory for Wales, however, with a goal in the 57th minute. 

“This has been a process for us over the past couple of years," Welsh player Gareth Furlong said.

"We have gone toe to toe with some high ranked teams and not got over the line. 

"But we have been training hard and we can compete with anyone in the world if we play a good game.”

In the remaining Pool A game, Austria crushed Belarus 5-0.

Italy also caused an upset in Pool B, narrowly beating China who are ranked 18 places above them.

Julian Montone struck first for the Italians, before Tu Yuan Lin equalised for China. 

Agustin Nunez then scored the winner for Italy. 

Malaysia delighted the home crowd with a 6-0 thrashing of Brazil.

The competition continues tomorrow with Austria facing Canada and Wales taking on Belarus.

The top two teams in the Finals will secure a place in the qualification events for the 2020 Games which will be held in October and November 2019.

Two other Finals featuring different teams will take place over the next two months.