This article is part of our The Kids' Table series.
Last week, we took a look at the invitees to team Canada's World Junior Championship camp and how that roster should shake out prior to the tournament, which begins Dec. 26 in Helsinki, Finland. Canada is the odds-on favorite to win repeat gold, but don't count out the rest of the field, which features plenty of exciting prospects. Chances are, most of the top talent will be accounted for in deep keeper leagues, but it's sometimes those surprising contributors who provide the best fantasy value. So with a lot to cover, let's dive right into it, shall we?
United States
Attendees: 29
2016 Draft-Eligible Players: 8
Free Agents: 4
The U.S. team had a pretty disappointing finish to last year's tournament, failing to medal after losing to Russia 3-2 in the quarterfinals. The boys in red, white and blue will certainly miss the presence of Jack Eichel and Dylan Larkin down the middle, not to mention defensemen Ian McCoshen, Noah Hanifin and Anthony DeAngelo. But the biggest difference could be in goal, as the Americans will be without Thatcher Demko.
That said, they should still be fine in net, with Alex Nedeljkovic (CAR) and Brandon Halverson (NYR) both returning. Halverson played one game in 2015, shutting out a very weak team Germany in the preliminary round, so he figures to get the first crack at leading U.S. in 2016. Nedeljkovic will likely get some playing time and is the clear-cut replacement should Halverson struggle. Nedeljkovic is intriguing
Last week, we took a look at the invitees to team Canada's World Junior Championship camp and how that roster should shake out prior to the tournament, which begins Dec. 26 in Helsinki, Finland. Canada is the odds-on favorite to win repeat gold, but don't count out the rest of the field, which features plenty of exciting prospects. Chances are, most of the top talent will be accounted for in deep keeper leagues, but it's sometimes those surprising contributors who provide the best fantasy value. So with a lot to cover, let's dive right into it, shall we?
United States
Attendees: 29
2016 Draft-Eligible Players: 8
Free Agents: 4
The U.S. team had a pretty disappointing finish to last year's tournament, failing to medal after losing to Russia 3-2 in the quarterfinals. The boys in red, white and blue will certainly miss the presence of Jack Eichel and Dylan Larkin down the middle, not to mention defensemen Ian McCoshen, Noah Hanifin and Anthony DeAngelo. But the biggest difference could be in goal, as the Americans will be without Thatcher Demko.
That said, they should still be fine in net, with Alex Nedeljkovic (CAR) and Brandon Halverson (NYR) both returning. Halverson played one game in 2015, shutting out a very weak team Germany in the preliminary round, so he figures to get the first crack at leading U.S. in 2016. Nedeljkovic will likely get some playing time and is the clear-cut replacement should Halverson struggle. Nedeljkovic is intriguing considering the Hurricanes current goaltender situation, so if he performs well in this tourney we could see him in the NHL sooner rather than later.
Zach Werenski (CBJ) and Brandon Carlo (BOS) figure to be the top pairing on defense, but the guys to keep an eye on all play their hockey in Boston. Charlie McAvoy (eligible for the 2016 draft), Casey Fitzgerald and Brandon Fortunado should be staples on the blue line in this tournament. McAvoy is a smooth skater with a lot of offensive upside, something the U.S. team would have liked to see more of from its defense in 2015. Fitzgerald and Fortunado are a bit undersized, but bring a lot of grittiness from the very competitive Hockey East. Chad Krys (also eligible in 2016) is committed to play for Boston University next season and has a lot of DeAngelo in him – he's a very offensive-minded defenseman.
At forward, there are the usual suspects, including the projected No. 1 overall pick in 2016, Auston Matthews, followed by big names like Colin White (OTT), Sonny Milano (CBJ) and Matthew Tkachuk (Keith's son and a likely 2016 top-five pick). Milano had a great tournament in 2015, posting two goals and four points in five games, so he will be asked to lead this year's team offensively. There are also OHL superstars Christian Dvorak and Alexander DeBrincat, who will help replace the scoring of Eichel and Larkin.
Perhaps the most unknown and intriguing forward invited is Clayton Keller, who's eligible for next year's draft, but has also committed to play for BU next season. Keller has racked up 15 goals and 42 points in 23 games with the U.S. National Development Team this season. His skating is at another level, and you don't need to watch much tape to see he's a very gifted playmaker. He's only 17 years old, so obviously his chances of making the final roster will be slim, but this team really needs guys with Kelller's speed and vision.
Russia
Attendees: 37
2016 Draft Eligible: 15
Free Agents: 0
Russia almost pulled off the upset in the gold-medal game against Canada, but wasn't able to complete the comeback, falling 5-4. Behind Canada, Russia was easily the most offensively gifted team, which shouldn't surprise anyone who knows anything about hockey. At forward, the Russians lose a bit of firepower thanks to the departures of Maxim Mamim, Alexander Sharov, Pavel Buchnevich and the high-flying Sergei Tolchinsky, but that will only create bigger roles for a handful of talented 2015 draftees.
Heading up that list is Evgeny Svechnikov (DET), who will make his under-20 WJC debut and will be asked to lead the way on offense. Denis Gurianov is a name to familiarize yourself with, considering he's got a chance to crack the Stars' roster out of camp next season. He's an interesting pickup in deep keeper leagues with the potential to land in a top-six role for Dallas, which could mean playing time alongside either the Jamie Benn-Tyler Seguin duo or the "consolation prize," Jason Spezza. Sharks draft pick Nikolai Goldobin just missed the cut this year, but fortunately, Vladislav Kamenev (NAS) didn't. Kamenev has been playing in the AHL for the Milwaukee Admirals, where he has 13 points in 20 games. The biggest knock on Kamenev is his discipline, but he's only has eight penalty minutes so far this season. The Predators will start to roll over their roster over the next couple of seasons and Kamenev is a top-six candidate. Alexander Dergachev is another returning forward who was productive last time around, and he was drafted in the third round by a Kings team that needs an infusion of youth in its forward corps.
Russia's defense is normally lackluster, but thankfully, we get to watch Flyers draftee Ivan Provorov skate at the WJC for a second consecutive year. He wasn't very productive on offense in 2015 as a 17-year-old, but figures to captain the blue line this time around. Along with the defense, the goaltending position will also see a complete overhaul, with three inexperienced netminders competing for the starting role. The leader is Caps first-rounder Ilya Samsonov, who has been incredible in 14 games for Mettalurg of the KHL this season, posting a 1.87 GAA and .929 save percentage. Behind him are Alexander Georgiyev and Maxim Tretyak, who are both eligible for the 2016 draft. If you were wondering, yes, that is the grandson of Soviet legend Vladislav Tretyak. Maxim is only 19 years old and has struggled a bit in the lower levels of the Russian circuit, but he obviously has some name value and the pedigree of one of the greats.
Finland
Attendees: 27
2016 Draft Eligible: 14
2017 Draft Eligible: 2
The Finns, like the Americans, weren't very happy with their showing in the last WJC, having taken a 6-3 quarterfinal loss to Sweden. The good news is that team featured a lot of very young players, most notably Jesse Puljujarvi and Patrik Laine, prospective 2016 draftees. Puljujarvi played in last year's WJC as a 16-year-old and led the tournament in shots on goal. Whenever he's drafted, he'll be a hot commodity in deep keeper leagues due to his size and creativity with the puck. Laine doesn't have the upside of Puljujarvi, but is probably a more complete player right now. He's also projected to go pretty high in the upcoming draft, so look for him to lead this Finland squad in points. Laine is a candidate to make a quick transition from the Finnish Elite League into the NHL, depending on which team selects him in 2016.
A couple of familiar names in Mikko Rantanen (COL) and Kasperi Kapanen (TOR) were left off the initial camp roster, but they're likely to suit up for Finland on home ice. Rantanen led Finland with four goals in last year's tournament, while Kapanen had a poor showing, scoring just once over five games. Kapanen has nine points in 15 games in the AHL this season and really needs to have a big tournament to convince the Maple Leafs' brass that he's ready to play in the NHL. Rantanen had a short stint with the Avalanche to begin this season, but was ultimately sent down to the San Antonio Rampage, where he's really thrived, netting 19 points over 15 games.
Finland is always known for its goaltending, but they've graduated Juuse Saros and Ville Husso. This time around, Kaapo Kahkonen (MIN) and the 2016-eligible Veini Vehvilainen will duke it out for playing time in net. Kahkonen hasn't posted the best numbers this season, but is the veteran of the group, while Vehvilainen is the more talented option, albeit the younger one. My guess would be that Vehvilainen ultimately wins the job, boosting his draft stock in the process.
If you're looking for some sleeper candidates, Roope Hintz (DAL) is a big winger with a lot of promise who really knows the game and is excellent at setting up his linemates for scoring opportunities. He'll likely be a in the top-six forward group for Finland and will look to build on his performance in 2015, when he posted a pair of assists over five games with a plus-3 rating.
There are still a ton of competitive teams at this year's tournament, but the last big one I'll quickly touch on is Sweden, which should hang around long enough to compete for a medal. Long-time NHLer Michael Nylander's two sons, Alexander (eligible in 2016) and William Nylander (the No. 8 pick by Toronto last year), headline Sweden's roster, with Adrian Kempe (LAK), Joel Eriksson-Ek (MIN) and Dmytro Timashov (TOR) rounding out the forward group.
Linus Soderstrom (NYI) was great in last year's tournament between the pipes, posting a 2.31 GAA and .917 save percentage in seven games, so expect him to get the bulk of the starts. On the blue line, Gustav Forsling (VAN) leads the way after posting three goals and eight points in 2015, but also mark down Sebastian Aho (free agent) and Jacob Larsson (ANA).
