Welcome back to Top Shelf Prospects, the column looking at Hockey’s Future Stars. Over the next week or so, we will be previewing the 2014 World Junior Championships, a tournament that will be played in Toronto and Montreal from December 26, 2014 to January 5, 2015. As always, you can check out the previous Top Shelf Prospects articles here.
Today we preview the some of the players to watch on teams who are not considered favorites heading into the tourney. While Slovakia, Switzerland, Denmark, and Germany may not be the most powerful teams on paper, there are some individual stars on their rosters. The tournament has also featured a number of memorable upsets over the years and if one of these teams is going to upset one of the big 6 of International Hockey in this tournament it will likely be on the back of a big performance from one of these players.
Note players must be born on January 1st, 1995 or later to be eligible for the tournament. 1994 birthdates are not eligible. Players are organized by country and then in alphabetical order.
This week I looked at the Czech Team, the Russian Team and the Swedish Team. Prior to the selection camp rosters being released; I looked at Team Canada’s Forwards, Defence and Goalies; Team USA forwards, and Defense and Goalies . Click the links to check them out. Now without further ado, on to Denmark.
Denmark World Junior Players to Watch
Oliver Bjorkstrand: A third round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2013, Bjorkstrand put up 50 goals for the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks last season, and already has 21 goals in 28 games this year. Bjorkstrand is a natural sniper who has very heavy wrist and snap shots, along with an excellent one-timer. His shooting arsenal features an excellent release which he uses to fool goaltenders when he is coming down the wing on a rush, or after setting up in the offensive zone. He has a real knack for getting open either by trailing slightly behind on rush, or by finding the soft spot in the defence to unleash his vast shooting arsenal. A tad undersized, he has outstanding stickhandling and is tough to knock off the puck. He is very shifty and is able to avoid checks and buy time for his teammates to get open. He is an underrated playmaker with very good vision and passing skills. Bjorkstrand attempts to go to the key areas, and shows no lack of intensity in battling for pucks along the boards.
Nikolaj Ehlers: Drafted ninth overall by the Winnipeg Jets, Ehlers is a fantastic skater, whose speed is off the charts, and he has outstanding acceleration and great agility. He beats even the quickest of defenders one-on-one, and can take them wide and cut to the net. He is very solid on his skates and has a powerful stride that can fight through checks, hooks, and holds. He has good balance and is very difficult to knock off the puck and this should only improve as he adds weight. Ehlers combines that skating skill with great hands and he can score in close when he cuts to the net. His stick handling ability is high-end and he can make moves and control the puck while at top speed. He is absolutely lethal off the rush, and if defenders back off on him to avoid being beaten by his speed, he can use the space to let go a great wrist shot which features an excellent release. His passing skill is also high level, and he has great vision and hockey sense to take advantage of that. Ehlers is willing to work in the dirty areas, and handles the puck well, even in heavy traffic areas.
Germany World Junior Players to Watch
With the Oilers deciding to keep Leon Draisatl up in the NHL, there just aren’t a lot of recognizable names on this German roster, but here is one player you might be hearing from in the 2015 NHL Draft.
David Trinkberger: A 17-year old defender playing for the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL, Trinkberger has tremendous size at 6’4″. He is a two-way defender with very good mobility for his size, and he covers a lot of ice. He makes a strong first pass out of the zone and shows good offensive instincts in joining the rush or pinching in from the point at the right times. He could stand to improve his shot, but makes good decisions at the point as the powerplay quarterback looking to make strong passes through seams to open teammates. Defensively his positioning is good and he cuts down passing and shooting lanes well. He’s also good one-on-one for a young defenceman but could stand to work on his physical game. He’s a candidate to be a mid round pick in the 2015 NHL draft.
Slovakia World Junior Players to Watch
Peter Cehlarik: A third round pick of the Boston Bruins in the 2013 draft, Cehlarik returns to the Slovak squad after scoring 3 points in 5 games in last year’s tournament. Cehlarik has a great wrist shot and an excellent release. He also has good size at 6’2″ and gets to the front of the net where he creates screens and gets tip ins and rebounds. The Slovaks will look to Cehlarik to play the role of sniper if they are to have any success in the tournament. He has a solid skating stride, and the power and balance to fight through checks and get to the front of the net.
Martin Reway: An undersized winger with a ton of skill, the Slovakian prospect was a 4th round pick of the Montreal Canadiens in the 2013 NHL Draft. Reway has absolutely outstanding stickhandling, with quick, soft hands that can dangle in a phone booth. He also is a very quick and agile skater, he’s shifty and slippery making him extremely hard to contain off the rush, or even off the cycle game in his own zone. Reway has a hard, accurate shot and a quick release which makes him extremely dangerous as a goal scorer. He also has good vision and passing abilities. An offensive dynamo, Reway does need some work on his defensive game though. At last year’s tournament Reway put up 4 goals and 10 points in just 5 games. This year he has 21 points in 23 games for HC Sparta Praha in the top level Czech league.
Switzerland World Junior Players to Watch
Kevin Fiala: A first round pick of the Nashville Predators in 2014, Fiala is a dynamic skater. He has great speed and acceleration. He can beat defenders to the outside and get by them and cut to the net. He has great edgework and agility, and a tremendous first step. This gives him the ability to fool defenders with quick cuts and then turning on the jets. Fiala has very good balance and is strong on the puck and this should only improve as he continues to add muscle going forward. In terms of offensive tools Fiala uses his speed to be first on the forecheck and creates great pressure on the defence. He is effective with his stick in creating turnovers. Once he gets the puck he protects it well and has a number of clever moves with his stick which can help him get around defenders. He is a solid passer, with very good vision. However, Fiala is at his best as a sniper. His wrist and snap shots feature great releases and he has the hockey sense to find open spots in the defence where teammates can set him up. His defensive game is a work in progress.
Timo Meier: A top rated prospect for the 2015 NHL draft, Meier has had a tremendous start to the season with the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads putting up 46 points in 33 games so far. An improved skating stride and more speed have really helped him this season, and he’s racking up points and rocketing up draft charts as a result. He’s not a speedster, but while he was once a bit of a poor skater, he’s now slightly above average in this regard. Meier has great hockey sense and gets to the open areas of the ice, where he can be set up to finish chances with an excellent shot and release. He is also a very physical player, establishing his position in the slot and winning board battles to create offence. He has excellent balance and can control the puck down low on the cycle. He is a strong two-way player who also kills penalties for the Mooseheads.
Noah Rod: A 2014 San Jose Sharks draft pick Rod plays what can best be described as a North American style taking plenty of grit and mixing it with some skill. He forechecks hard, and wins a lot of board battles. Will drive the net when he does have the puck on his stick. His skating speed is decent, but his edgework and agility are very good which make him very slippery in the offensive zone. He is already well-developped in terms of his two-way game, and should join Meier on the Swiss penalty kill unit.
Mirco Mueller: After starting the season with the San Jose Sharks there was some question if he would be allowed to play in the World Juniors, but the Sharks made the announcement yesterday that the 2013 first round pick would indeed be playing for his country. Mueller is a smooth skating, mobile defenceman, whose game is based on this ability. His lateral agility is very good, especially given his size. His crossovers, pivots, and edgework are also very solid, giving him the ability to cover a lot of ice defensively, or to walk the line and open up passing and shooting lanes offensively. His first step quickness and acceleration are also very good but he could use some work on his top end speed, as it is merely average. Mueller started to develop his offensive ability last season putting up 5 goals and 27 points in 60 games. He keeps his head up and makes a good first pass most of the time. He also shows solid vision and playmaking skill from the point on the powerplay. Mueller has a hard shot which he keeps low and on net. He has good stickhandling ability and combined with his good skating he is able to both lead the rush and join it as a trailer. At 6’04″ Mueller has great size and has added weight over the last two summers, and this has made him an even better defender, adding to his ability to win battles and clear the crease. He also shows good positioning and high hockey IQ. He diagnoses the play well, maintains good gap control, and keeps his man to the outside. He is not afraid to block shots, and he cuts down passing lanes well. He gets involved in board battles and works hard to clear the crease. However he could stand to use his size more effectively and this can come with the added muscle mass I talked about above.
Check back tomorrow as we continue to go through the players to watch at the 2015 World Junior Hockey Championships, finishing with the defending champions from Finland.
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