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It is now late December, and that implies that households throughout the world are glued to their televisions watching the IIHF World Junior Championship. This 12 months’s occasion is hosted in Gothenburg, Sweden and has produced loads of nice hockey even earlier than the medal rounds have began. Many gamers make the most of the event as a way of showcasing their expertise in an effort to be drafted, signed, or acquire extra alternatives. The Calgary Flames are in the midst of a middling season in the NHL and will doubtlessly be in the marketplace for some draft picks, given their a number of highly-coveted unrestricted free brokers. Should the workforce slip farther in the standings and a number of of Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, and Noah Hanifin get moved, they’ll doubtless be searching for expertise accessible through the draft, assuming picks are traded in return.
Related: Calgary Flames’ Best Players to Ever Play at the World Juniors
Therefore, the World Juniors provide a fantastic likelihood to watch sure gamers in preparation for the June draft. It can be handy for watching your individual workforce’s prospects or taking notes on different groups’ prospects in anticipation of trades. Flames’ in-house merchandise at this 12 months’s competitors are scarce. Most followers will doubtless be cheering on defending champions Team Canada, however numerous people ought to have their consideration this 12 months. The round-robin video games are formally performed, and the all-important medal spherical is about to start. This is the place the enjoyable begins. Without additional ado, listed here are 4 gamers the Flames and their followers ought to preserve watch over at the 2024 World Junior Championship.
Samuel Honzek, C/LW, Team Slovakia
First up is an apparent one, as Flames followers needs to be paying thoughts to final 12 months’s first-round decide, Sam Honzek. The group nabbed him with the sixteenth total decide after he starred for the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League. He totalled 23 targets and 56 factors in simply 43 video games, and had 4 factors in 4 playoff video games as his workforce was swept in the first spherical by the Kamloops Blazers. The 6-foot-3, 181-pound native of Trencin, Slovakia is extremely touted for his puck safety expertise and his offensive finesse regardless of his dimension. This 12 months, he was named the first European captain in Giants historical past, however his season with the workforce has been restricted to simply 5 video games due to injury. In that point, he has scored 3 times and has seven whole factors.
This is Honzek’s third World Juniors; he skated in all 4 video games for Slovakia in 2022 after which had his 2023 event minimize brief by damage, solely suiting up for 2 contests. He went scoreless in his first two tournaments, however as alternate captain of a robust Slovak workforce this 12 months, he has three targets and 4 factors in 4 contests. He’s served as an enormous web entrance presence on the energy play and has proven off his comfortable palms in tight.
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Flames followers needs to be very excited to see how he can step up in crunch time with potential medals on the line. The 2024 Slovak workforce has stunned many with a 3-0-1-0 document via the round-robin stage and can look to win their first medal since incomes bronze in 2015.
Niks Fenenko, D, Team Latvia
Next up is a little bit of a curveball with Latvian defenceman Niks Fenenko. Latvia completed final of their group after round-robin play however will tackle the United States in the quarterfinals. However, we predict Fenenko, certainly one of the workforce’s prime blueliners, is worthy of extra consideration. Even although he’s pointless via 4 video games, he has performed large minutes in all conditions and is the solely Latvian defenceman to not have a adverse plus/minus ranking. The 19-year-old plies his commerce in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar, and has 5 targets and 25 factors via 29 video games this season. This season is not any fluke both; he had 77 factors in 118 video games over the earlier two seasons. The Flames might actually do worse than to take a flier on Fenenko and see if he can attain a good greater stage of play.
Felix Unger Sörum, RW, Team Sweden
Third, we’ve a prospect from one other NHL group, winger Felix Unger Sörum. The 18-year-old was drafted in the second spherical of final 12 months’s draft, 62nd total courtesy of the Carolina Hurricanes. This got here after starring in Sweden’s junior league and making his skilled debut for Leksands IF of the Swedish Hockey League. With the Hurricanes supposedly having talks with the Flames on buying the providers of Lindholm, maybe Flames scouts ought to spend a while watching Unger Sörum (from, ‘LeBrun rumblings: Latest on Lindholm, Pettersson, Kuznetsov, the Olympics and a Devils game-changer’, The Athletic, Dec. 22, 2023). His draft profile mentioned excessive ranges of puck dealing with, distribution, and physique motion that preserve his defenders guessing.
The artful younger ahead has performed very properly for host Sweden, discovering immense chemistry inside the prime six and on the energy play. Unger Sörum has one aim and 5 assists in 4 matches up to now. He has the identical totals in 17 video games for Leksands IF as properly, as he has made the full-time transition to professional hockey for 2023-24. His playmaking from the wing and powerful energy play passing expertise would profit the Flames vastly. The Hurricanes are absolutely excessive on Unger Sörum, however as a aggressive workforce, they may very well be prepared to half with him for a package deal centred round Lindholm to get higher in the instant future.
Zeev Buium, D, Team USA
Last is a participant we predict is greater than worthy of a first-round choice at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. 18-year-old American defenceman Zeev Buium has confirmed himself as a blue-chip defensive prospect even whereas caught behind Team USA’s many proficient rearguards. He has two targets and two assists via 4 video games and is a whopping plus-9, whereas solely having dedicated one minor penalty. He is a stable two-way defender, being accountable in his personal finish whereas hopping in on rushes and making wonderful first passes up the ice. He is presently in his first season at the University of Denver in the NCAA, the place he has already made waves with 5 targets and 25 factors in simply 18 video games.
Many rankings have Buium slated to be picked in the mid-to-late first spherical, the place the Flames could have a range. Their personal decide is shaping up to be mid-round, and may they purchase one other from a contender through commerce, perhaps one choice may very well be used on Buium.
In conclusion, the World Juniors is an annual competition of expertise, and every kind of gamers make names for themselves there. Whether they’re already workforce property, a possible draft decide, or maybe a future commerce acquisition, NHL scouts preserve shut eyes on a mess of younger gamers at this event. The 4 listed below are some you’ll be able to wager could have eyes on them, and for those who’re a fan of the Flames, you need to too.
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