The holiday season is upon us, which means yuletide cheer, festive greetings and – most importantly – the annual IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships, this year in Toronto and Montreal. Ten teams of under-20 players will embark upon the greatest tournament in sports to determine the supreme junior hockey power in the world.
For NHL fans, the World Juniors can often be a confusing time, with so many new teams to keep track of in addition to the existing big-league cheering allegiances. In the interest of cheering clarity, here is a handy cheat sheet to which NHL prospects are playing on which World Junior roster.
ANAHEIM DUCKS (3)
- D Shea Theodore – Canada – 2013 first round pick (26th overall)
- F Nick Ritchie – Canada – 2014 first round pick (10th overall)
- F Ondrej Kase – Czech Republic – 2014 seventh round pick (205th overall)
ARIZONA COYOTES (2)
- F Max Domi – Canada – 2013 first round pick (12th overall)
- F Anton Karlsson – Sweden – 2014 third round pick (87th overall)
BOSTON BRUINS (3)
- D Anton Blidh – Sweden – 2013 sixth round pick (180th overall)
- F David Pastrnak – Czech Republic – 2014 first round pick (25th overall)
- F Peter Cehlarik – Slovakia – 2013 third round pick (90th overall)
BUFFALO SABRES (4)
- F Sam Reinhart – Canada – 2014 first round pick (2nd overall)
- F Victor Olofsson – Sweden – 2014 seventh round pick (181st overall)
- F J.T. Compher – USA – 2013 second round pick (35th overall)
- F Hudson Fasching – USA – 2013 fourth round (118 overall) [drafted by Los Angeles, traded to Buffalo]
CALGARY FLAMES (1)
- D Rushan Rafikov – Russia – 2013 seventh round pick (187th overall)
CAROLINA HURRICANES (3)
- G Alex Nedeljkovic – USA – 2014 second round pick (37th overall)
- F Lucas Wallmark – Sweden – 2014 fourth round pick (97th overall)
- F Sergei Tolchinsky – Russia – signed as a free agent
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS (5)
- D Robin Norell – Sweden – 2013 fourth round pick (111th overall)
- F John Hayden – USA – 2013 third round pick (74th overall)
- F Anthony Louis – USA – 2013 sixth round pick (181st overall)
- F Tyler Motte – USA – 2013 fourth round pick (121st overall)
- F Nick Schmaltz – USA – 2014 first round pick (20th overall)
COLORADO AVALANCHE (1)
- D Will Butcher – USA – 2013 fifth round pick (123rd overall)
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (4)
- D Dillon Heatherington – Canada – 2013 second round pick (50th overall)
- D Ryan Collins – USA – 2014 second round pick (47th overall)
- F Oliver Bjorkstrand – Denmark – 2013 third round pick (89th overall)
- F Sonny Milano – USA – 2014 first round pick (16th overall)
DALLAS STARS (3)
- D Julius Honka – Finland – 2014 first round pick (14th overall)
- D Aleksi Makela – Finland – 2013 seventh round pick (182nd overall)
- F Matej Paulovic – Slovakia – 2013 fifth round pick (149th overall)
DETROIT RED WINGS (5)
- D Joe Hicketts – Canada – signed as a free agent
- F Julius Vahatalo – Finland – 2014 sixth round pick (166th overall)
- F Christoffer Ehn – Sweden – 2014 fourth round pick (106th overall)
- F Axel Holmstrom – Sweden – 2014 seventh round pick (196th overall)
- F Dylan Larkin – USA – 2014 first round pick (15th overall)
EDMONTON OILERS (2)
- D Darnell Nurse – Canada – 2013 first round pick (7th overall)
- D William Lagesson – Sweden – 2014 fourth round pick (91st overall)
FLORIDA PANTHERS (1)
- D Ian McCoshen – USA – 2013 second round pick (31st overall)
LOS ANGELES KINGS (3)
- D Alex Lintuniemi – Finland – 2014 second round pick (60th overall)
- F Dominik Kubalik – Czech Republic – 2013 seventh round pick (191st overall)
- F Adrian Kempe – Sweden – 2014 first round pick (29th overall)
MINNESOTA WILD (2)
- G Kaapo Kahkonen – Finland – 2014 fourth round pick (109th overall)
- F Alex Tuch – USA – 2014 first round pick (18th overall)
MONTREAL CANADIENS (4)
- G Zachary Fucale – Canada – 2013 second round pick (36th overall)
- F Jacob de la Rose – Sweden – 2013 second round pick (34th overall)
- F Artturi Lehkonen – Finland – 2013 second round pick (55th overall)
- F Martin Reway – Slovakia – 2013 fourth round pick (116th overall)
NASHVILLE PREDATORS (4)
- G Juuse Saros – Finland – 2013 fourth round pick (99th overall)
- D Joonas Lyytinen – Finland – 2014 fifth round pick (132nd overall)
- F Kevin Fiala – Switzerland – 2014 first round pick (11th overall)
- F Vladislav Kamenev – Russia – 2014 second round pick (42nd overall)
NEW JERSEY DEVILS (2)
- D Steven Santini – USA – 2013 second round pick (42nd overall)
- F Miles Wood – USA – 2013 fourth round pick (100th overall)
NEW YORK ISLANDERS (2)
- G Linus Soderstrom – Sweden – 2014 fourth round pick (95th overall)
- G Ilya Sorokin – Russia – 2014 third round pick (78th overall)
NEW YORK RANGERS (4)
- G Igor Shestyorkin – Russia – 2014 fourth round pick (118th overall)
- G Brandon Halverson – USA – 2014 second round pick (59th overall)
- F Anthony Duclair – Canada – 2013 third round pick (80th overall)
- F Pavel Buchnevich – Russia – 2013 third round pick (75th overall)
OTTAWA SENATORS (3)
- D Andreas Englund – Sweden – 2014 second round pick (40th overall)
- F Curtis Lazar – Canada – 2013 first round pick (17th overall)
- F Nick Paul – Canada – 2013 fourth round pick (101st overall) [drafted by Dallas, traded to Ottawa]
PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (3)
- D Samuel Morin – Canada – 2013 first round pick (11th overall)
- D Robert Hagg – Sweden – 2013 second round pick (41st overall)
- F Oskar Lindblom – Sweden – 2014 fifth round pick (138th overall)
PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (1)
- F Kasperi Kapanen – Finland – 2014 first round pick (22nd overall)
SAN JOSE SHARKS (5)
- G Fredrik Bergvik – Sweden – 2013 fourth round pick (117th overall)
- D Julius Bergman – Sweden – 2014 second round pick (46th overall)
- D Mirco Mueller – Switzerland – 2013 first round pick (18th overall)
- F Noah Rod – Switzerland – 2014 second round pick (53rd overall)
- F Nikolay Goldobin – Russia – 2014 first round pick (27th overall)
ST. LOUIS BLUES (3)
- G Ville Husso – Finland – 2014 fourth round pick (94th overall)
- F Robby Fabbri – Canada – 2014 first round pick (21st overall)
- F Ivan Barbashev – Russia – 2014 second round pick (33rd overall)
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (3)
- D Dominik Masin – Czech Republic – 2014 second round pick (35th overall)
- D Anthony DeAngelo – USA – 2014 first round pick (19th overall)
- F Brayden Point – Canada – 2014 third round pick (79th overall)
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (3)
- D Rinat Valiyev – Russia – 2014 third round pick (68th overall)
- F Frederik Gauthier – Canada – 2013 first round pick (21st overall)
- F William Nylander – Sweden – 2014 first round pick (8th overall)
VANCOUVER CANUCKS (3)
- G Thatcher Demko – USA – 2014 second round pick (36th overall)
- D Gustav Forsling – Sweden – 2014 fifth round pick (126th overall)
- F Jake Virtanen – Canada – 2014 first round pick (6th overall)
WASHINGTON CAPITALS (3)
- G Vitek Vanecek – Czech Republic – 2014 second round pick (39th overall)
- D Madison Bowey – Canada – 2013 second round pick (53rd overall)
- F Jakub Vrana – Czech Republic – 2014 first round pick (13th overall)
WINNIPEG JETS (6)
- G Eric Comrie – Canada – 2013 second round pick (59th overall)
- D Josh Morrissey – Canada – 2013 first round pick (13th overall)
- D Jan Kostalek – Czech Republic – 2013 fourth round pick (114th overall)
- F Nic Petan – Canada – 2013 second round pick (43rd overall)
- F Nikolaj Ehlers – Denmark – 2014 first round pick (9th overall)
- F Chase de Leo – USA – 2014 fourth round pick (99th overall)
Wow, not only do the Winnipeg Jets have the most prospects overall, they probably have the best overall lineup without any random 6/7 rounders. And picks on on quality clubs other then Ehlers, who is a stud anyhow.
Great to see Comrie get the SO tonight, going to be fucale until (and big IF) he gets lit up, but the boys are looking good so far.
Though these chog matchups get frustrating during the WJHC.
This is the year.
It would be interesting to see the NHL “standings” as a result of points earned by these players; I suppose it would have to be weighted according to how many layers each NHL team has. Also goaltenders ranked separately.
Ottawa has three not two. Lazar, Englud and Nick Paul (F-Canada)
Doesn’t look like Kaapo Kahkonen made the final cut for Finland. World Junior site and NHL.com have just Ville Husso and Juuse Sarros in net for the Finnish.
Ottawa has Nick Paul’s rights, not Dallas…he was part of the Spezza deal!