Many NHL fans will be unwrapping presents on Christmas Day. Then, on Boxing Day, they’ll begin dreaming about the gifts possessed by World Junior Championship participants who—they hope—might one day shine for their favourite big-league squad.
Watching the WJC is always as much about getting a glimpse of your club team’s best prospects as it is rooting for your national team. The seven Canadian clubs are well represented in the 2017 tournament, though only three members of Team Canada’s 22-man roster are property of squads from north of the 49th.
With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 players drafted by Canadian clubs to watch in this always-fun event. (No future Edmonton Oilers made the cut, but Northern Albertans can keep an eye out for Finland’s Aapeli Rasanen and Team USA’s Caleb Jones.)
Bear in mind, these youngsters are ranked according to how much of an impact we think they’ll have in the next couple weeks, not what kind of NHLer we expect them to eventually be.
10. Filip Chlapik, C, Czech Republic
Ottawa Senators
Drafted: 2nd round, 48th overall, 2015
Good size at six-foot-one, 200-pounds, Team Canada fans didn’t get to see Chlapik in the tune-up game in Ottawa against the Czechs this week, but he’ll be a big factor for the team once the tournament starts. After scoring at slightly better than a point per game pace for the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders last season, he’s a top 10 scorer this season, posting huge numbers with 20 goals and 44 points in 26 games so far.
9. Noah Juulsen, D, Canada
Montreal Canadiens
Drafted: 1st round, 26th overall, 2015
Juulsen, 19, has acknowledged he was stung by being left off last year’s edition of Team Canada. That was part of a disappointing season for Juulsen, who’s bounced back nicely this year with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips.
He’s a right-shot, top-four defenceman who’ll log significant time for the Red and White.
8. Tyler Parsons, G, Team USA
Calgary Flames
Drafted: 2nd round, 54th overall, 2016
Parsons proved his mettle with a wonderful post-season for the London Knights last spring, when he posted a .925 save percentage in 18 OHL playoff games, then was even better with a 1.78 goals-against average and .942 SP in four games at a Memorial Cup tournament his club won.
The 19-year-old figures to be Team USA’s No. 1 man in the crease.
7. Jeremy Bracco, RW, Team USA
Toronto Maple Leafs
Drafted: 2nd round, 61st overall, 2015
The small, skilled Bracco is one of the OHL’s most dangerous forwards, having posted 51 points in 27 games for the Kitchener Rangers this year. The 19-year-old is making his WJC debut, but he was a monster on the 2015 U.S. under-18 club that won gold. The only person on that team with more points than Bracco’s 13 was future Leaf teammate Auston Matthews with 15.
6. Oliver Kylington, D, Sweden
Calgary Flames
Drafted: 2nd round, 60th overall, 2015
This is Kylington’s third WJC and he already has more than 70 AHL games on his career resume. The 19-year-old isn’t overly big, but he’s a magnificent skater and should log huge minutes on a savvy Swedish blueline.
5. Colin White, C, Team USA
Ottawa Senators
Drafted: 1st round, 21st overall, 2015
White was a point-per-game player for the U.S. last year and figures to be at least as impactful as a 19-year-old this time out. The right-shot pivot is having a solid sophomore season with Boston College and will wear an ‘A’ for the Yanks at this tournament.
4. Mikhail Sergachev, D, Russia
Montreal Canadiens
Drafted: 1st round, ninth overall, 2016
Sergachev, 18, actually made the Habs out of training camp, but was sent back to the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires after three games. The 18-year-old’s game is rounding into form just in time for the WJC.
As much as anyone in the tournament, this six-foot-two blueliner has the potential to take your breath away on any given shift.
3. Olli Juolevi, D, Finland
Vancouver Canucks
Drafted: 1st round, fifth overall, 2016
The brainy 18-year-old will be Finland’s captain as Scandinavia’s scrappiest country tries to defend its gold medal from 2016, when Juolevi had an impressive nine points—all of them assists—in seven contests.
Nothing jumps off the page with this guy, but tally up all his smart decisions and it forms just the kind of player you want running the back end.
2. Thomas Chabot, D, Canada
Ottawa Senators
Drafted: 1st round, 18th overall, 2015
Chabot, who has 20 points in 14 QMJHL outings with the Saint John Sea Dogs, will play an enormous role on the Canadian blue line. The 19-year-old was a part of Canada’s disappointing sixth-place finish last year and, no doubt, will be hungry for a better result.
At six-foot-two, Chabot—one of Canada’s alternate captains—can think on his feet, often while they’re moving quickly beneath him.
1. Jack Roslovic, C, Team USA
Winnipeg Jets
Drafted: 1st round, 25th overall, 2015
Roslovic had 19 points in 25 games as an American Hockey League rookie with the Manitoba Moose when the Jets decided to loan him to Team USA. That means he’s been succeeding against men the past few months, and will now turn his attention to teenagers.
The 19-year-old will be an integral part of the American offence at what will be his first WJC.
