When Team Canada hits the ice at the world juniors, fans can expect to see a group packed with speed.
Unlike last year’s tournament, which was held in Toronto and Montreal on NHL-sized ice, the 2016 event takes place in Helsinki, Finland on international-sized ice.
This means there was more of an emphasis put on skating ability from Hockey Canada management when deciding on its selection camp roster, which was announced Tuesday.
Team Canada will have some size — returning forward Lawson Crouse, who stands at 6-foot-4, 212 pounds, should be a major factor in the team’s success — but overall it will be a smaller forward group compared to last year.
“We certainly want to have speed and skill,” Ryan Jankowski, director of player personnel for Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Junior Team told reporters on a conference call Tuesday. “It just so happens that some of those guys this year are in the 5’11”-6’0″ range. That doesn’t mean we’re looking for a smaller team. It doesn’t mean we’re looking for a bigger team. We just want to have speed and skill and ensure that the competitiveness is there from these guys. That’s one thing we like about the group is that they compete. They work hard, there’s intangibles.”
One player who fits the mould of exactly what Jankowski is talking about is Ottawa 67’s captain Travis Konecny. The first-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers has 39 points in 25 games in the Ontario Hockey League so far this season and could turn out to be a key cog for Canada.
“We like him as a player that can play in a number of different spots,” Jankowski said. “He’s a natural centreman but has played a lot of right wing the last few years, which makes him very versatile for us.”
Konecny represented the OHL at the recent Canada Russia Series as did fellow selection camp roster mates Dylan Strome, Lawson Crouse, Mitch Marner, Spencer Watson, Michael Dal Colle, Brendan Perlini, Roland McKeown, Travis Dermott, Jakob Chychrun and Mackenzie Blackwood.
Jankowski explained that series’ importance to the selection camp roster.
“I think the Canada Russia Series really helps sort out our final decisions,” he said “We get a good feeling across the country who the top players are through those games. We see them in a different element against international competition with a little bit of a best-on-best [feeling] and usually the top players there are the top players we see at the world juniors.”
The defensive corps will be led by returnee Joe Hicketts, a player that demonstrates the skating ability management is looking for. Just like he did with the forwards, Jankowski pointed to speed and mobility as being integral to Team Canada blueliners.
“We like our D group as a whole. We’ve got 11 guys and the thing that they all can do is skate,” he said. “They’re extremely good skaters and good puck movers. They’re going to be able to get the puck to our forwards and go back and get pucks.”
Of the 30 players on the selection camp roster, only 22 will make the team. Since Hockey Canada management only named two goaltenders to Tuesday’s roster this means eight skaters will be cut when Canada finalizes the squad on Dec. 19 at midnight when the NHL initiates its annual holiday roster freeze.
