Hockey Canada Announces 2021 World Championship Roster
The IIHF World Championship roster is always a little different. Because the tournament takes place during the NHL playoffs, many players are unable to attend. Many others choose not to participate because of injuries they sustained during the season, meaning there are often some interesting choices that compete for their country.
Like the U.S. roster that was officially released just a few days ago, the Canadian contingent looks even more odd than normal. Not only does the management team have injuries and the postseason to deal with, but many players haven’t seen their families for months and just want to spend some quality time at home.
Though the initial paperwork had been reported on recently, the full official roster is as follows:
G Adin Hill
G Darcy Kuemper
G Michael Dipietro
D Braden Schneider
D Colin Miller
D Owen Power
D Sean Walker
D Mario Ferraro
D Troy Stecher
D Nicolas Beaudin
D Jacob Bernard-Docker*
F Liam Foudy
F Dillon Dube
F Jaret Anderson-Dolan
F Gabriel Vilardi
F Adam Henrique
F Justin Danforth
F Nick Paul
F Brandon Hagel
F Michael Bunting
F Connor Brown
F Max Comtois
F Brandon Pirri
F Andrew Mangiapane
F Cole Perfetti
Like the U.S. squad, which includes draft-eligible Matthew Beniers, the Canadians have decided to take along his University of Michigan teammate Power. The 18-year-old Power is expected to challenge for the first overall selection this season and will get a chance to showcase his talents on the international stage, after being denied his opportunity to compete at the World Juniors.
*added after the initial roster was announced
Rangers Sign Braden Schneider To Entry-Level Deal
March 4: The Rangers have officially announced the contract, signing Schneider for a entry-level deal that starts next season.
March 3: The Rangers now have both of their 2020 first-round picks under contract as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that they’ve inked defenseman Braden Schneider to a three-year, entry-level contract. The deal carries a base salary of $925K (including a 10% signing bonus), a minor league salary of $80K, and $400K in performance bonuses in each season.
The timing of this deal is notable. Since they weren’t able to get him signed by the end of 2020, Schneider wasn’t eligible to have his contract slide a year. As a result, by waiting until now to do the deal, they were able to sign him to a future contract that begins in 2021-22 although they won’t benefit from the slightly lower AAV that a 2020-21 contract that slid would have provided.
Schneider was the 19th overall pick back in October, joining winger Alexis Lafreniere (first overall) as New York’s top selections from the draft. While their top selection is all about the offense, Schneider is more of a throwback defensive defender although he’s coming off a decent season offensively in the WHL where he had seven goals and 35 assists in 60 games with WHL Brandon.
This season, the pandemic has certainly limited Schneider’s playing opportunities with the WHL just getting underway. He did manage to earn a spot on Canada’s entry into the World Juniors where he had a goal and two assists along with 25 penalty minutes in six games. Schneider also made his pro debut, suiting up twice with AHL Hartford before being sent back to the Wheat Kings where he will wrap up his junior career before kicking off his first professional campaign next season.