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Alexander Nylander

Central Notes: Duchene, Hinostroza, Nylander, Werenski

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While not mathematically eliminated, when center Matt Duchene was placed on injured reserve on March 6, the Nashville Predators were a team that wasn’t going to the playoffs. However, without Duchene, the team went on a impressive run and currently sit fourth in the Central Division. While the team didn’t get better without Duchene in the lineup, the 30-year-old center now returns to the team (after missing almost six weeks due to a lower-body injury) and many eyes will be on him.

The Athletic’s Adam Vingan (subscription required) writes that Duchene needs to prove his value to the team. Duchene, who signed a seven-year, $56MM contract in July of 2019, hasn’t lived up to his end of the contract so far after two years. He was expected to step in and solve the team’s second-line center issues, but instead he has struggled. He scored an underwhelming 13 goals and 42 points last year in 66 games and has struggled even more with just three goals and eight points in 24 games. With five more years of Duchene at $8MM per season, the team has to hope they can get Duchene going in hopes of potentially convincing a team, such as the Seattle Kraken to take him.

  • It looks like Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman may have found himself a gem in recently acquired forward Vinnie Hinostroza. Acquired from Florida for middling prospect Brad Morrison, Hinostroza returned to his former team only to already post five assists in his first six games with Chicago. Originally added as a depth option, the Blackhawks could see a potential longer future with him. Hinostroza will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
  • Sticking with the Hawks, forward Alexander Nylander tweeted out himself that he is skating again. The 23-year-old forward was injured during the playoffs last season, suffering a torn meniscus, and hoped that rest would be enough to be ready for this season. In December, he decided instead to have surgery on his knee instead and was given a recovery timetable of four to six months. Now with four months done, Nylander looks like he’s slowly progressing.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that defenseman Zach Werenski, who was deemed out for the rest of the season due to a sports hernia, had successful surgery Wednesday. The recovery time for the surgery is expected to be six to eight weeks, ensuring that Werenski should be back for the start of training camp next season.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Chicago Blackhawks

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2019-20 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Chicago Blackhawks

Current Cap Hit: $78,163,461 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Kirby Dach (three years, $925K)
F Dominik Kubalik (one year, $925K)
F Anton Wedin (one year, $925K)
D Adam Boqvist (three years, $894K)
F Dylan Strome (one year, $863K)
F Alexander Nylander (two years, $863K)
F Alex DeBrincat (one year, $778K)

Potential Bonuses

Dach: $2.5MM
Strome: $2.48MM
Nylander: $850K
Kubalik: $850K
Boqvist: $850K
DeBrincat: $33K

The Blackhawks have done quite a bit of work to bring in a number of top players on entry-level contracts over the past few years in hopes of taking a team that was loaded with high-priced, aging talent and getting them back into playoff contention. They have hit the jackpot with DeBrincat, who immediately stepped onto the ice and has been a phenomenal top-six player for the past two years, scoring 69 goals so far, including a key 41-goal season last year. The diminutive winger was passed up by many teams in the 2016 draft and has proven that his size isn’t an issue on the team. The only problem is that his entry-level deal will be up at the end of the season, meaning the Blackhawks will likely have to pay a high price to lock him up. Strome, in the meantime, has been a solid trade acquisition. The top prospect, who couldn’t seem be able to turn the corner in the pros, broke out once arriving in Chicago, putting up 17 goals and 51 points in 58 games. If he can produce at a similar level, the Blackhawks will have to offer pay up again, giving them two potential significant contracts the team will have to pay out one year from now.

Chicago also is banking on a number of their draft picks to make an impact. Dach, the third-overall pick in this year’s draft, could be an option for the team if he can prove he’s ready for NHL action now, but with a number of young forwards pushing for playing time on their roster, he’d have to dominate and prove he might be ready to assume a third-line center position. Boqvist, the team’s eighth-overall pick in 2018, will challenge for playing time as well, but could just as easily spend time in the AHL to get used to playing against adults for part of the season first. Regardless, the team has two core pieces that are close to joining the organization.

General manager Stan Bowman has also made an effort in bringing in talent from outside the organization as the team has brought in a pair of prospects over from Europe in Wedin and Kubalik. The 26-year-old Wedin broke out in his rookie season in the SHL with 14 goals, while Kubalik scored 25 goals and 57 points in 50 games in the NLA. The team also surprised a few people earlier this summer when it traded top defensive prospect Henri Jokiharju to Buffalo for Alexander Nylander. The team hopes to get Nylander going as the eighth-overall pick in 2016 has so far struggled with consistency in three AHL seasons.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

G Corey Crawford ($6MM, UFA)
G Robin Lehner ($5MM, UFA)
F Drake Caggiula ($1.5MM, RFA)
D Erik Gustafsson ($1.2MM, UFA)
D Slater Koekkoek ($925K, RFA)

The team did a phenomenal job of bringing in some goaltending help by stealing away UFA goaltender Lehner with a one-year, $5MM deal. That’s a steal if Lehner can produce anything close to last year’s numbers of a 2.13 GAA and .930 save percentage in 46 games. The 2018-19 Jennings and Masterton Trophy winner last year, Lehner can stabilize the Blackhawks goaltending situation, which has struggled due to concussion issues that Crawford has sustained over the past two years. Without Crawford, the team has struggled in goal. The hope is that both will be healthy this year and can share the workload, but if Crawford has trouble getting on the ice again, Chicago can now turn to Lehner. With both players down to one year remaining before unrestricted free agency, the Blackhawks can look at how both players fare this year and offer a long-term deal to the player they feel can best help them in the future.

The team may have their most challenging decision to make about Gustafsson next season. The rising defenseman put up impressive numbers in a full season last year after looking sharp in the second-half of 2017-18. The 27-year-old scored 17 goals and 60 points and if he can duplicate a season like that could find himself to be one of the most marketable UFA blueliners next year. With the Blackhawks having to hand out big contracts to DeBrincat and Strome, the team may have to move Gustafsson at the trade deadline or let him go at the end of the season for nothing.

Two Years Remaining

F Brandon Saad ($6MM, UFA)
F Zack Smith ($3.25MM, UFA)
F David Kampf ($1MM, RFA)
D Carl Dahlstrom ($850K, RFA)
F Dylan Sikura ($750K, RFA)
F John Quenneville ($750K, RFA)

The team has two contracts that they might want to see gone soon. The team re-acquired Saad back in 2017 in hopes of bringing back a big-time goal scorer. However, Saad hasn’t been nearly as dominant since returning, although he did rebound with a 23-goal campain last season. However at $6MM AAV, Saad could easily be a candidate to move on from when they need to free up some extra cash next offseason. Smith is in a similar situation. The team acquired Smith this summer in a swap of bad contracts as the team managed to unload Artem Anisimov. Smith, however, scored just nine goals last season in Ottawa and could have a hard time locking down a spot in the bottom-six with so many younger players pushing for playing time.

The team can only hope that some of their younger players like Sikura and the newly acquired Quenneville can contribute immediately, but both would have to take their game up a notch to prove themselves at the NHL level. Sikura, signed out of Northeastern University after the 2018 season, fared well in the AHL, but failed to register a goal in 33 games with the Blackhawks. The team also hopes that Kampf and Dahlstrom can prove themselves in their lineup.

Three Years Remaining

D Calvin de Haan ($4.55MM, UFA)
D Olli Maatta ($4.08MM, UFA)
D Connor Murphy ($3.85MM, UFA)
F Andrew Shaw ($3.9MM, UFA)
F Ryan Carpenter ($1MM, UFA)
G Collin Delia ($1MM, UFA)

In hopes of improving its defense, the team went out and acquired a pair of defenders in de Haan and Maatta over the summers. The Blackhawks picked up de Haan from Carolina  and while he’s currently dealing with a shoulder injury and isn’t expected to start the season, he has proven to be a solid defender for years and should upgrade the team’s top-four. The team also moved some of its young forward depth by sending Dominik Kahun to Pittsburgh to get the defensive-minded Maatta. The two veteran blueliners should bolster a defense that had plenty of issues over the past few years. However, both come with significant contracts, especially if either defenseman struggles to succeed in Chicago. The team also has Murphy, who the team acquired two years ago from Arizona, who has three years remaining and has found himself a solid contributor on the team’s blueline.

The team also has acquired Shaw this summer to improve their depth in hopes of getting Chicago back in the playoffs. The former Blackhawk should add a significant presence on their bottom-six and add an element of physicality to the team. Carpenter, signed away from Vegas, should also improve the team’s bottom-six.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Patrick Kane ($10.5MM through 2022-23)
F Jonathan Toews ($10.5MM through 2022-23)
D Brent Seabrook ($6.88MM through 2023-24)
D Duncan Keith ($5.54MM through 2022-23)

Things will likely change next season, but Chicago’s four biggest contracts haven’t changed with all of them, minus Seabrook’s, down to four more years and starting to look more and more manageable. Kane continues to amaze at age 30 as he posted 44 goals and a career-high in points with 110. His contract doesn’t even look like it’s a questionable one. The 31-year-old Toews also had a resurgent season as he tallied a career-high 35 goals and 81 points, showing that as long as he has talented players around him, he is more than capable of justifying his $10.5MM AAV.

Keith is somewhat of a different story. He’s 36 now and will be 40 when his contract ends and while there has been an evident decline, the veteran has still shown that he’s a solid defender, scoring six goals and 40 points last year and is averaging more than 23 minutes of ice time a game still. The question will be how long can Keith keep up those numbers and will his game decline even more over the next couple of years. Seabrook, however, has that extra season on his deal as he is locked up for five more years. At 34-year-old, Seabrook has seen an obvious decline that even saw his minutes drop under 20 minutes a game for the first time in his career, not a good sign when the team has him under contract until 2024. The team can only hope that he can come back and prove that he still has the skills to be a top-four defenseman.

Buyouts

None

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Still To Sign

F  Brendan Perlini

Chicago still has one restricted free agent and must find a number that will make the youngster happy, but considering his inconsistent season, the team may have some trouble figuring out how much to pay him. Perlini, also acquired with Strome in the Nick Schmaltz trade during the season last year, struggled at first in Chicago, but finally broke out in March with eight goals and 10 points in 13 games. A one-year or bridge deal would be the most likely course of action to see whether Perlini’s late success can be duplicated. The former first-round pick from 2014 could be a major asset if Chicago can get the most out of the team.

Best Value: Lehner
Worst Value: Seabrook

Looking Ahead

The Blackhawks have done quite a bit in the last year to improve their team with the hopes of getting their veteran core back in the playoffs once again after a two-year absence. Chicago has added a bunch of veteran players and young and cheap roster additions that should be able to turn their team around. The key, of course, is the team needs their veterans to continue to thrive, while their younger players must continue to improve. On top of that, the Blackhawks must hope that a number of their roster additions can take that next step in their development and prove to be valuable to the team’s overall depth.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Chicago Shopping Brendan Perlini

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There’s been no shortage of turnover in Chicago this summer, with the team acquiring Olli Maatta, Calvin de Haan, Andrew Shaw, and Alexander Nylander, signing Robin Lehner, and drafting Kirby Dach, while watching Dominik Kahun, John Hayden, Gustav Forsling, Marcus Kruger, and Henri Jokiharju depart. Yet, the re-shaping of the roster may not be done yet. Blackhawks insider Jay Zawaski of the Madhouse Chicago Hockey Podcast reports that the team is actively shopping young forward Brendan Perlini. 

Perlini, 23, is currently a restricted free agent looking for his first deal following the expiration of his entry-level contract. While the big winger was trending towards a nice pay day through his first two NHL seasons with the Arizona Coyotes, the status quo is much less clear since Perlini was dealt to the Blackhawks this past season alongside Dylan Strome. While Strome took off in Chicago, Perlini struggled and only began to find his game late in the season. Altogether, Perlini recorded just 15 points in more than half a season with the Blackhawks and never looked to fully gain the trust of the coaching staff. While it’s obvious that this could cause a rift between the team and player when it comes to contract negotiations, there was never any indication that it went so far as Chicago seeking to trade Perlini rather than re-sign him, at least until now.

With very little salary cap space remaining – approximately $2.04MM according to CapFriendly – and a lineup that still needs three more forwards, the Blackhawks have to be both creative and careful with how they fill out the roster. If the team is struggling to convince Perlini, a player they might not be sold on, to take a deal that fits within their cap constraints, then shopping him makes sense. On the other hand, they could be giving up too quickly on a young player who dealt with a change of scenery but has previously looked like a future 20-goal scorer. It never hurts to test the trade waters and see what the return may be for a player, but Chicago will have to make sure that they’re moving Perlini for the right reasons and for a fair return or risk ending up on the wrong side of a potential deal.

Snapshots: Sabres, Gardiner, Tkachyov

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Few have criticized the Sabres’ side of the recent Henri Jokiharju–Alexander Nylander trade, but it’s a fact that Buffalo is overflowing with defenders after acquiring the young right-hander from the Chicago Blackhawks. As Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News’ points out, the Sabres still have needs to fill up front and they could use their defensive depth to do so. Lysowski writes that Buffalo has ample cap space to make an addition at forward, but there are few ideal candidates left on the free agent market and the team may as well use their surplus of blue liners to swing a deal. Jokiharju is safe, as are fellow recent additions Brandon Montour and Colin Miller and 2017 No. 1 pick Rasmus Dahlin. RFA Jake McCabe is not likely to be dealt, but a potential candidate and injury-prone Zach Bogosian and overpaid veteran Matt Hunwick might be hard to move. That would seemingly leave Rasmus Ristolainen, a fixture on the rumor mill, Marco Scandella, and Casey Nelson as the most likely names to be dealt and it would not be a surprise if more than one ends up elsewhere. The Sabres are certainly not done making moves this summer.

  • Of course, this makes Buffalo just one of a surprising number of teams not biting on Jake Gardiner this summer. PHR’s top-ranked UFA defenseman, Gardiner remains unsigned more than a week after the market opened. NBC Sports’ Scott Billeck reports that Gardiner is seeking $7MM annually in his next year, which is likely pricing himself out of the range that many D-needy teams are looking for. It’s hard to argue that Gardiner was not the best available defenseman when free agency opened, but he’s also not a top-pair defenseman by most metrics and teams aren’t willing to shell out right now simply due to a weak market. Billeck names the Winnipeg Jets as a team that could use Gardiner, but can’t afford him at his current asking price. The Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings, and his own Toronto Maple Leafs also fit that description. Billeck feels the New Jersey Devils could be the leading candidate to land Gardiner right now, but there really aren’t many clear fits for the defender at this time unless he changes his expectations.
  • Despite flirting with a jump to the NHL for several years, Vladimir Tkachyov has decided to re-sign in the KHL once again. SKA St. Petersburg has announced an extension with the young scorer. Tkachyov, 23, has been a solid offensive contributor for the past several years but the best may still be yet to come. The winger was acquired by SKA last month from Salavat Yulaev Ufa for the rights to Nikita Soshnikov, who has since signed in Ufa, and Tkachyov could be set for some career-highs with the perennial contenders in St. Petersburg. It is a two-year contract with SKA, so Tkachyov has a couple more years to further prove he is a formidable forward, and could very well drawn NHL attention once again in 2021.

Buffalo Sabres Acquire Henri Jokiharju

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The Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks have pulled off a whopper of a trade, swapping Alexander Nylander for Henri Jokiharju. Both players are still on their entry-level contracts for another two seasons.

For Buffalo, the acquisition of Jokiharju continues an overhaul of their blue line. The team has now acquired Brandon Montour, Colin Millar and Jokiharju over the last several months, all three of which are right-handed. This latest trade will only continue to fuel the speculation about Rasmus Ristolainen, but almost certainly means that someone will have to be moved out before long. Casey Nelson and Zach Bogosian also play that side, though perhaps it is not a guarantee that Jokiharju will start the season in the NHL.

He did play 38 games for the Blackhawks last season and held his own at the NHL level. Recording 12 points and strong possession numbers while averaging close to 19 minutes a night at the highest level, his season also included a stint in the minor leagues with the Rockford IceHogs and a trip to the World Juniors where he took home the gold medal with Finland. When the season was over, he joined the Finnish World Championship squad as one of their only players with NHL experience and was a big part of them taking home the gold medal once again.

Overall it was quite the showing for Jokiharju, though his game at times did show the warts usually associated with 19-year old defensemen. The 29th-overall pick from 2017, he’ll need to find a little more consistency in his own end if he wants to really fulfill the promise he showed as a potential top-pairing player. That kind of potential is exactly what the Sabres are hoping to find, but it did cost them a pretty exceptional asset of their own.

Even though Nylander hasn’t quite found his footing yet at the NHL level doesn’t mean he won’t. Selected eighth overall in 2016, the younger brother of Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander has played just 19 games for the Sabres over the last three seasons. Even in the minor leagues, Nylander’s huge offensive ceiling hasn’t shown up consistently enough, leading to just 86 points in 165 AHL games. That performance though doesn’t tell the whole story, as Nylander has dealt with various injuries and could very well be in line for a breakout year at age-21.

Remember that this is a player who competed three times at the World Juniors, scoring 28 points in 21 games. He also won the CHL Rookie of the Year award in his only season with the OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads, scoring 87 points in 63 games. His puck possession skills are excellent and he can create offense both for himself and his teammates, even if his overall game hasn’t quite come together yet.

The Blackhawks have some recent history to look back on in terms of high picks finally fulfilling their potential upon arriving in Chicago. Dylan Strome was in much the same situation as Nylander when he was hopping back and forth between the minor leagues and Arizona Coyotes. Before joining the Blackhawks he had registered just 17 points in 48 games with Arizona but immediately broke out in Chiacgo to the tune of 51 in 58. That kind of offensive explosion is exactly what GM Stan Bowman will hope for once again.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Buffalo Sabres Recall Alexander Nylander From AHL

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With little left to play for, the Buffalo Sabres announced Sunday they have recalled prospect Alexander Nylander from the Rochester Americans of the AHL. The Sabres have struggled recently, having lost four in a row and are 2-6-2 in their last 10 games and with the season starting to get away from them, it may as well see what it has in Nylander.

For Nylander, the team’s first-round pick from 2016, who has missed some time due to injury in the month of February, the recently-turned 21-year-old has struggled once again in his third year in the AHL, having scored just 12 goals and 31 points in 49 games. While those are career-highs after struggling with just 10 goals in the 2016-17 season and eight goals in an injury-plagued 2017-18 when he missed the first two months of the season with a strained groin, the team was hoping for more from one of their top prospects.

He started the season strong, but disappeared in a stretch of 19 games from December through February where he tallied just one goal and four assists in that time. Nylander, however, has been hot recently as he’s scored four goals and added two assists in his last four games, which was enough of a reason to recall him. The team hopes that it can assess what it has in their young prospect considering this is his third year in the organization and the team must assess whether he is the player they thought they picked with the eighth-overall pick. With 14 games remaining for the Sabres, he should get a long look. Nylander received a four-game callup in 2016-17 where he tallied one assist. He got a three-game look last season where he scored his first goal.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Buffalo Sabres

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As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. Let’s take a look at what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Buffalo Sabres. 

What are the Sabres most thankful for?

Can Sabres’ fans be any more thankful for the fact that the team, the same team that finished last in the standings one season ago, is currently in first place in the entire NHL with 34 points. That may be short lived as several teams just beneath them play before the Sabres go for their 10th straight win on Tuesday, but few could have predicted the success for second-year general manager Jason Botterill and head coach Phil Housley this season.

The Sabres shook up their entire roster from a year ago and made critical additions at every level, which included adding Jeff Skinner to their top line on offense, adding a number of solid players to their depth chart including Vladimir Sobotka, Patrik Berglund, Casey Mittelstadt, Conor Sheary and Tage Thompson, while adding 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin (who has been as good as advertised) on defense. That doesn’t include the team’s success in goal. Those moves have stabilized the team’s defense as they ranked sixth in the league in goals against this year as well as having one of the best penalty killing units in the league as well.

Who are the Sabres most thankful for?

While it would make sense to put Skinner and his 18 goals in this spot, we can save him for later. The tandem that has really impressed this year has been the play of the Sabres goaltenders Carter Hutton and Linus Ullmark. The team, which struggled a year ago with Robin Lehner and Chad Johnson has thrived this year. Much of that could be the improvement of the team’s defense, but at the same time both goalies have been better than anyone had expected.

While Hutton was the top goaltender on the market this offseason, most people felt that Hutton was not capable of being a No. 1 goaltender, often comparing him to Carolina’s Scott Darling. However, Hutton has been better than advertised, already netting 11 wins and posting a solid 2.53 GAA and a .919 save percentage in 18 appearances. The untested Ullmark also has looked good, although the team has been careful to not overwhelm the 25-year-old. However in five appearances, he’s also posted a 2.52 GAA and an even more impressive .926 save percentage.

What would the Sabres be even more thankful for?

More production from their youth. The team is very young and is loaded with talent at the AHL level as well. And while players like Dahlin have been impressive, the team could take another step in the right direction if they can develop some of their young core even quicker. Dahlin has played well sharing No. 1 defenseman duties with Rasmus Ristolainen, but he’s capable of even more. The team has gotten just four goals from Mittelstadt and would like to see him develop into a consistent presence in the top six at some point.

Others like Thompson, who has suddenly starting showing off some offense with three goals in his last four games, as well as Evan Rodrigues need to continue to develop as well to allow the team to reach peak efficiency both now and in the future. The team is also loaded with a number of prospects including defensemen Lawrence Pilut and Brendan Guhle, while they have several potential options at forward as well in C.J. Smith, Daniel O’Regan and Alexander Nylander waiting for an opportunity.

What should be on the Sabres’ Holiday Wish List?

The team has made it clear they intend to work on an extension with Skinner next month, but the team really needs to make sure it can lock down the 26-year-old who leads the team in scoring this year and is only six goals away from beating his 24 goals from last season with Carolina. Skinner’s deal will be the main contract the team must deal with this offseason as the team has just three unrestricted free agents (Jason Pominville and Matt Moulson being the others). Skinner’s pairing with Jack Eichel has produced a powerful top line in the NHL and should only get better as the two continue to get comfortable with each other.

With the expiring contracts of Moulson and Pominville, although the team may want to attempt to retain the latter, there should be plenty of money to lock up Skinner now, so they won’t have to worry about him losing him this summer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor Transactions: 4/8/18

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With the Eastern Conference still undecided until today’s final regular season game, the Western Conference has no questions as the Colorado Avalanche finished off the St. Louis Blues in a 5-2 victory Saturday as they clinched the final playoff spot. The Nashville Predators got the top spot and will face the Avalanche. In other first-round matchups, the Vegas Golden Knights will face the Los Angeles Kings, the Anaheim Ducks will face the San Jose Sharks and the Minnesota Wild will face the Winnipeg Jets. 

2018 World Juniors Recap

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The 2018 World Junior Hockey Championships came to an end last night with a 3-1 Canada win over Sweden. Tyler Steenbergen was the unlikely hero, the only Canadian forward without a goal in the tournament to that point broke the tie with under two minutes left in the game. It was the perfect way to close out a memorable World Juniors, complete with the tournament’s first ever outdoor game, the most goals ever scored by an American player (Kieffer Bellows’ 7), and the first player to ever toss his medal away into the stands (Sweden’s Lias Andersson). While the bulk of the WJC coverage is generally just the results of the games, let’s take a closer look at the standouts of the tournament:

Canada – Gold

Top Performers: While Jordan Kyrou (STL) led the Canadians with ten points and had a fantastic tournament, the undisputed top player was the fourth overall pick this past June, defenseman Cale Makar (COL). The UMass product posted three goals and five assists to finish third in scoring for Canada. Tied for first among all defenseman in points at the WJC, Makar showed his next-level offensive ability for the first time on the international stage. Sam Steel (ANA) impressed as well with nine points and the second-best face-off percentage in the tournament. Victor Mete (MTL) showed his NHL experience has already had an impact on his defensive game; he finished +11 without a single goal scored while he was on the ice. Carter Hart (PHI) finished with the best save percentage, .930, and goals against average, 1.81, in the tournament.

Biggest Surprise: Probably the surprise of the whole tournament was Drake Batherson (OTT), a fourth-round pick who was not even invited to Canada’s camp, who led Canada in goal-scoring with seven tallies. Canada had faced criticism of including Batherson on the roster over several recent top picks who were skipped over, but decision paid off in a major way.

Sweden – Silver

Top Performers: If Rasmus Dahlin (2018) wasn’t the presumptive #1 overall pick in 2018 already, he is after the WJC. With a team-high six assists and +7 rating in major ice time, Dahlin proved that his draft stock is legitimate. While polarizing during the medal ceremony, the only opinion of Lias Andersson’s (NYR) play was that it was strong. The Swedish captain tied for the team lead with seven points, six of which were his team-high six goals. Elias Petterson (VAN) and Alexander Nylander (BUF) were also impressive with seven points apiece. Filip Gustavsson (PIT) was rivaled only by Canada’s Hart in terms of the tourney’s top goaltender.

Biggest Surprise: The Swedes were top-heavy in terms of scoring, with the aforementioned four standouts contributing much of the offense, but that didn’t stop Axel Jonsson Fjallby (WAS) from making his presence felt. The 2016 fifth-rounder had four points, including two shorthanded goals, and was third on the team in shots.

United States – Bronze

Top Performers: Kieffer Bellows (NYI) led the WJC with nine goals and his teammate, Casey Mittelstadt (BUF), shared the tournament lead in points with eleven. So, while the U.S. fell short of their goal of being repeat champions, they arguably showcased the two best players of the World Juniors. Bellows passed up Jeremy Roenick as the highest goal-scoring American player in WJC history and finished one point behind Mittelstadt for the total points lead in a strong effort, while Mittelstadt was not only a top scorer, but a top a well-rounded presence as well, with a +8 rating. Mittelstadt’s rating was only bested on the team by defenseman Dylan Samberg (WPG), whose +10 was third-best at the WJC. The nine points for Brady Tkachuk (2018) will only serve to help his draft stock this June.

Biggest Surprise: Despite being assigned a crucial two-way, defensive role for the U.S., Trent Frederic (BOS) still managed to pot five goals, second-most on the team behind Bellows and tied for fifth in the tournament. He was also the only American player to score goals at even strength, on the power play, and on the penalty kill.

Czech Republic – 4th

Top Performers: Perhaps the player that helped his draft stock the most at the World Juniors was Filip Zadina (2018), who tied for second in the tournament with seven goals and helped lead his team to a semifinal appearance. The man assisting on many of Zadina’s goals was Martin Necas (CAR), who tied the U.S.’ Mittelstadt as the WJC’s points leader and led the tournament with eight assists. Necas looked like the most pro-ready prospect in the entire tournament. On the back end, Libor Hajek (TBL) tied only Canada’s Makar for the most points by a defenseman.

Biggest Surprise: The Czech’s scored more goals, 22, than any other team in the tournament. While Necas and Zadina, arguably the tournament’s most dynamic duo, had a lot of input, the whole roster stepped up and helped the team finish higher than other teams considered to be contenders, such as Finland and Russia.

Finland – 5th

Top Performer: Eeli Tolvanen (NSH) – 1 goal, 5 assists, 6 points. Led team in assists, points, shots, and +/-.

Biggest Surprise: Joona Koppanen (BOS, 5th-round in 2016) – 3 goals, 1 assist, 4 points. Second on team in goals.

Russia – 6th

Top Performer: Klim Kostin (STL) – 5 goals, 3 assists, 8 points. Led team in goals, points, and +/-.

Biggest Surprise: Artur Kayumov (undrafted) – 3 goals, 2 assists, 5 points. Second on team in goals and points.

Slovakia – 7th

Switzerland – 8th

Denmark – 9th

Belarus – 10th (relegated)

Poll: Who Will Win The WJC Gold Medal Game?

at CDT | by 1 Comment

In what has been a tournament filled with outstanding performances—except perhaps at the ticket offices—Canada and Sweden have outlasted all the rest and will come together in the World Junior Championship gold medal match tonight. Neither team lost a game in regulation during the tournament, with Canada only falling in a snowy shootout at the hands of the United States in the outdoor game.

Both teams are loaded with future NHL talent, including the almost consensus 2018 first-overall pick in Rasmus Dahlin. Dahlin has been incredible all tournament long, looking just as poised and confident as always. The 17-year old defenseman plays for Frolunda in the SHL, where he has 11 points in 26 games and has graced highlight reels all season. While other 2018-eligible players have impressed at the tournament, Dahlin has cemented his spot as a franchise-changing prospect and the prize of the draft lottery.

It’s not just Dahlin starring for Sweden though. Their group of 2017 first-round picks—Elias Pettersson, Lias Andersson, Erik Brannstrom and Timothy Liljegren—have all shown moments of brilliance throughout the last couple of weeks, and all look like they’ll make their NHL debuts before long. Alexander Nylander has shown off his elite offensive skill, and reminded Buffalo fans that even though he’s struggled at the AHL level he still has tremendous upside.

For Canada, a team that has just a single first-round pick on the whole roster, the scoring responsibility has been spread throughout. Every Canadian player save for Dante Fabbro has at least a point in the tournament, with St. Louis Blues prospect Jordan Kyrou leading the way. Perhaps the biggest surprise has been Cale Makar (that aforementioned first-round pick, fourth-overall to the Colorado Avalanche last year), who has worked his way up from the seventh defenseman on the roster. Makar has been a dynamic powerplay quarterback and will be relied upon again tonight against the tough defense of the Swedes.

It will be a very tough matchup for both sides, as neither has given up very many chances. With the quick-strike offense both teams possess, the game could hinge on which experienced defense corps makes the fewest mistakes. It also could be an Olympic preview for some of the players, as Kyrou and Victor Mete are possibilities to go to Pyeongchang for Canada, while several of the Swedes (including Pettersson and Dahlin) playing in the SHL could crack their squad.

So who will take home gold tonight? Who will win MVP? Who have you been most impressed by in the tournament? Vote below, and use the comment section to discuss.

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