TORONTO—Mikey McLeod may have started this World Junior Hockey Championship as Team Canada’s 13th forward, but just four days later, the kid was not only seeing time on the No. 1 line—he was also giving orders to his captain.
Says Canadian captain, Dylan Strome, on the instruction he got from his new linemate: “I love that.”
McLeod, the 18-year-old New Jersey Devils prospect who was selected 12th overall last year, jumped up to the No. 1 line to play right wing alongside Strome and Pierre-Luc Dubois on Thursday against Latvia, replacing an injured Mitchell Stevens.
He also scored his second goal of the tournament on Thursday—“rebound in front, I pulled it to my backhand and slid it it in,” as McLeod succinctly described it. Only Taylor Raddysch (5, including 4 against Latvia) and Matt Barzal (3) have more goals for Canada than McLeod through three games.
Not bad for a guy who saw less than 3 minutes of ice time in the opener against Russia, who admits he wasn’t confident he’d make this team, and was “nervous” when the final cuts were made a couple weeks ago.
And if you saw McLeod in the faceoff dot taking draws on his backhand Thursday, that’s because the right-handed shot told Strome—a left-handed shot, who plays centre on that No. 1 line—that he figured he should step in. McLeod is, after all, a centreman for the Mississauga Steelheads, where he’s on a more than point-per-game pace this season.
“He won a couple [draws], and I got a couple plays off it,” Strome said, after Canada’s 10-2 drubbing of Latvia. “It’s good.”
Strome pointed out McLeod’s goal Thursday was his line’s first in 5-on-5 play in this tournament. “It’s nice to finally get one of those,” Strome said, with a laugh. “And nice for Mikey to get another one tonight…obviously it’s not easy starting as the 13th forward, but I think he understands his role and has been really mature about it, and he’s been rewarded. It’s nice to see.”
The six-foot-two, 195 lbs., McLeod is not only revelling in getting more ice time these days—he had a tournament-high 10:59 of playing time against Latvia—but the soft-spoken kid from Mississauga is enjoying being reunited with Strome. The pair grew up together, were on some of the same minor hockey teams, and played a lot of neighbourhood ball hockey.
“Just happy we’re playing together,” McLeod said, Thursday.
“We hadn’t played together in a long time, and it was nice to be on the same line with a guy with so much skill and speed,” Stome said. “It worked out well.”
While McLeod registered a shot on his first shift on the No. 1 line and scored a goal, we didn’t get a really good look at him with Strome and Dubois on Thursday because there were 17 penalties in the game, including nine in the first period alone.
But despite the fact he’s played fewer than 20 minutes through Canada’s first three games, McLeod has made an impact. Though, in addition to his second goal of the tournament on Thursday, he had a costly giveaway in the Latvian zone that saw Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Martins Dzierkals earn a breakaway and score his first of the tournament.
What you’ll notice first is McLeod’s speed, which Steelheads coach James Richmond calls “world class.”
In fact, part of what McLeod is working on this season is slowing down, at times, during games. “Hard as it is, I gotta get him to slow down, so he can use his speed to really surprise people,” Richmond says. “He can’t be going in fifth gear all the time.
The coach also points to McLeod’s “compete level.” “That’s why New Jersey drafted him so high,” Richmond said. “Coaches love coaching guys like him. He loves the game of hockey—he eats, drinks and sleeps hockey.”
It runs in the family: McLeod’s younger brother, Ryan, also plays on the Steelheads, and could be a first-round pick in 2018.
McLeod, who says the best part about his first-ever world junior experience so far is “the games and the fans and the atmosphere,” says he knew going into training camp “the role they wanted me to play,” as he puts it, which helped during those final nerve-wracking days when it came down to final cuts.
No. 20’s role with this team thus far has been his versatility, an ability to step in for an injury, and play either wing or centre.
And though you’d never know it judging from post-game interviews, McLeod is pretty talkative in the locker room, and “very extroverted,” according to Richmond. (McLeod grins when asked if he likes Canada’s goal song, We Dem Boyz, by Wiz Khalifa, then calls it “alright” and points out “it’s kinda repetitive.” Probably because Canada has scored 20 times in three games).
Strome says his buddy is hiding his personality a little bit in his post-game interviews.
“He’s not gonna be a guy that stands up and yells in the room but he’s not afraid to tell someone his mind, just on the bench, person to person,” Strome said.
As for his role on the ice, that may change for McLeod yet again as this tournament continues, with Canada set to face their American rivals on New Year’s Eve day, the winner earning top spot in Group B.
He’s already been the 13th forward, the top line’s right-winger, and centred that No. 1 unit (at faceoffs, at least). McLeod—who “sometimes” goes by “Clouder,” he says, but usually just Mikey—will be ready for whatever comes next.
“He’s used to being a go-to guy,” Richmond says. “Put him in any situation and I think he’ll succeed for you. I really do.”
While he’s at it, he might even give his linemates some advice.
“I like when he kind of comes out and tells me sometimes what to do,” Strome says. “It’s nice to have a guy with a bit of confidence.”