Leafs prospect Liljegren eyeing spot on Sweden’s world junior team

During the Jeff Blair Show discussions arose on how the Leafs first round pick Timothy Liljegren, not playing in Sweden, can only do good and that the Toronto Maple Leafs are looking at the present rather than the future.

The world juniors bring the game’s brightest young stars together in a showcase tournament motivated by international pride. Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander all participated on different teams in the 2016 competition.

While those three have graduated from prospects into NHL players, a young member of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization is hoping to follow that path as an 18-year-old.

After missing out on the annual tournament last year, Timothy Liljegren is already eyeing his spot on Sweden’s roster for the 2018 competition.

The Leafs’ first-round pick at the 2017 NHL Draft didn’t crack last year’s roster, after a case of mononucleosis forced him to miss time. But when hockey’s top prospects travel to Buffalo at the end of December this year, Liljegren plans on being there.

“Obviously it’s a huge goal for me to be on that roster,” Liljegren told Dhiren Mahiban at IIHF.com. “I wanted to be at the world juniors last year, but I had mono so it was a bit difficult so I’ll try my best to be on the roster this year.”

Without the Kristianstad, Sweden native in the lineup, his national team finished fourth after falling to Russia 2-1 in the bronze-medal game in January. Now, the defenceman is on track to be a key contributor for the Swedes. He’s currently in Plymouth, Mich., for a world junior summer showcase that includes Canada, Finland, and the United States.

“I think Timothy started out good,” Sweden coach Tomas Monten told IIHF.com. “I tried to talk to him coming in here that he doesn’t have a lot to prove, to try to play his game, and I think he did. I think he can be an asset for us.”

Not only does the 17th-overall pick have a chance to be an impactful player in the tournament, but he has an opportunity to share the blue line with the potential 2018 first-overall pick, Rasmus Dhalin.

“I think Rasmus Dahlin was obviously pretty fun to watch, he’s an exceptional talent,” Liljegren said. “I’m looking forward to it, he’s a fun guy to watch, fun guy to be around. In the locker-room he’s so calm and humble. He really doesn’t let all the hype get to his head.”

After falling 3-2 to the U.S. Wednesday, Sweden will play Canada on Friday before finishing up against Finland on Saturday.

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