The Ivan Hlinka tournament is one of the top destinations for U18 players around the world, looking for another chance to show off in their draft years. The tournament will be held in the Czech Republic starting on Monday, and Hockey Canada recently released their roster. Several of the Canadian players will be selected in the first round come 2018, and some—like Joe Veleno and Ryan Merkley—could climb right to the top of the draft.
One other name to watch out for is Akil Thomas, who is starting to climb up draft boards after a solid first season in Niagara of the OHL. The 5’11” 169-lbs forward is outstanding with the puck on his stick and should be more than most teams can handle at the tournament. While his size holds him back a bit from entering the top-10 projections, we have seen similarly built players excel in the NHL in recent years.
Forwards
Joe Veleno
Akil Thomas
Gabriel Fortier
Ty Dellandrea
Benoit-Olivier Groulx
Jack McBain
Barrett Hayton
Serron Noel
Aidan Dudas
Anderson MacDonald
Luka Burzan
Jackson Shepard
Nolan Foote
Defencemen
Kevin Bahl
Ty Smith
Calen Addison
Noah Dobson
Ryan Merkley
Jett Woo
Jared McIsaac
Goaltenders
Alexis Gravel
Olivier Rodrigue