CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON)
This years’ World Junior Championship tournament runs from Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Buffalo, N.Y., and again there is no shortage of Miners prospect talent from all the countries involved.
To get you prepared for the event, here are a few of the Miners prospects to keep an eye on:
CANADA
Alex Formenton, LW, London
Formenton, who was drafted in second round of the 2017 CCHL Draft, is one of the best pure speedsters outside the CCHL. On Canada, he’ll be relied on to use his skating to create havoc on the opponents on the forecheck and gain the zone off the rush. His skill isn’t high-end, but he has some skill and works hard off the puck. One of the youngest players in last year’s draft, he continues to surprise at every step and seems to be trending up as the years go on.
USA
Casey Mittelstadt, C/W, University of Minnesota
Drafted seventh overall by the Miners in 2017, few prospects will have as many eyes on him in Buffalo as the University of Minnesota freshman. Miners fans will surely be looking for a peek at the promising highly-skilled center who should be playing a prominent enough role for Team USA in the tournament.
The 19-year-old is off to a good start in his college career with 17 points in 19 games for the Golden Gophers. Mittelstadt is a creative player who moves the puck effectively, showing great anticipation and vision. While he is a natural center, don't be surprised to see Mittelstadt moved around a bit for Team USA. If things aren't cooking offensively, Mittelstadt could head back to the wing. You always want to have options in this short tournament, and when you've got a player as skilled as Mittelstadt, you have a lot of different ways to set up the lines.
Jake Oettinger, G, Boston University
Acquired in a trade mid-season with Fort Erie, Oettinger has been up and down this season, as has his whole team at Boston University. Having said that the talent is there and he will be right in the mix with Joseph Woll and Jeremy Swayman to start in goal for the USA.
FINLAND
Olli Juolevi, D, TPS Turku
Of all the players under pressure for a strong WJC performance, Miners fans will be looking for improvement from Juolevi. Two years ago, he actually had a very strong WJC and tied Zach Werenski for the defencemen scoring lead with nine points in seven games. Last year was the complete opposite, so which Juolevi will show up this time? Because it’s his third WJC tournament and he’s coming to it from Finland’s Liiga, so expectations are high.
Juuso Valimaki, D, Tri-City
Valimaki has been dinged up a few times this season, but when healthy, he’s been stellar and a shot generating machine at the international and WHL levels. He’s a very solid two-way defenseman who can move the puck, lead a rush or make a tough stop. Valimaki versatility is such that he can look like a safe shutdown guy on one shift and a dynamic push rusher the next. He is expected to be leaned on by Finland even on a deep defensive unit.
Henri Jokiharju, D, Portland
After missing the first few weeks of the season with an injury suffered at a U20 friendly, Jokiharju has been excellent in the WHL, being one of the league’s top defensemen. He skates and moves the puck at a high-end level. He’s smart, drives play and gets pucks on net. He will be an asset, even a key asset, as an 18-year-old at the U20 level
CZECH REPUBLIC
Martin Necas, C, Brno Kometa
If you think the Sudbury Miners need offence, Necas is their hope to fill that role in the future. The 19th overall pick of the 2017 CCHL Draft, Necas played one NHL game this season and has been a strong presence in the Czech Republic’s top pro league. He has great speed and stands 6-foot-1, so he needs to be a key contributor for the Czechs this year.
No comments:
Post a Comment