Team Canada Makes Second Set Of World Junior Cuts

After making their first set of cuts late last night, Canada continued to trim down their roster in advance of the upcoming World Juniors.  Being sent back to their respective junior teams (per TSN’s Bob McKenzie in a series of tweets) are:

D Nicolas Beaudin (CHI)
D Jacob Bernard-Docker (OTT)
F Alex Formenton (OTT) – per McKenzie, his knee injury will keep him out for the tournament.
F Liam Foudy (CBJ)
D Pierre-Olivier Joseph (ARI)
F Isaac Ratcliffe (PHI)
G Matt Villalta (LAK)

Among the cuts on the back end, Beaudin’s is the most notable.  He sits second in the QMJHL in points per game among defensemen and would have been a strong offensive threat.  However, it appears they’ve opted to go with defensive stability with Markus Phillips (LAK) earning what appears to be the final spot on their roster.  Joseph is another offensively-gifted defender that was let go while Bernard-Docker is off to a good start in his freshman season and will have a good chance to make the team next season.  In goal, Villalta went into camp with the lowest odds to make the team as he was behind Michael DiPietro (VAN) and Ian Scott (TOR), who just signed his entry-level deal earlier in the day.

Up front, Ratcliffe has been one of the better scorers in the OHL and is on pace for his second straight 40-goal season.  Foudy was one of the top risers in the 2018 draft class, working his way into the middle of the first round.  His offensive game hasn’t taken a big jump this year but he has been a dependable two-way player and will also likely get a long look one year from now.  Formenton was a lock to make the team but he was injured in a scrimmage game earlier this week and was seen on crutches recently.

There is still one cut to be made up front that will be dependent on their injury situation as Kings prospects Jaret Anderson-Dolan (wrist) and Gabriel Vilardi (back) still have some question marks.  Final rosters aren’t due until December 25th so it’s likely that Canada will wait until closer to that date to make that decision.  With several pre-tournament games scheduled for next week, other countries will likely be making their final cuts in the coming days as well.