Yes, Nino's WJC performance, particularly in helping the Swiss knock off Russia in that tourney, really put him on a platform. It was a key reason why he was the guy I DIDN'T want to see the Isles take at that juncture. I didn't mind him, but there just wasn't much of a sample size, even if his WHL season was pretty Ok as well.
As for the U18 Worlds, they rarely have an effect on who is going 1st or 2nd. That's often pretty much determined by this time of year. And those spots are often already held by Canadians, which is worth mentioning, because Team Canada traditionally cannot ice its best U18 eligibles because many are busy with the CHL playoffs that are going on simultaneously.en lets a few other Canadians step up a bit and perhaps enhance their mid-round status.
This said, it's a prime tournament for Europeans, and one that often sees Swedish and Finnish players boost their draft stock considerably. In addition, it's what USA hockey spends two years preparing each genearation of players for, so top performances like last spring usually solidify top 10 draft slots for a couple of those kids.
In addiition, the tourney often gives the scouting community the only real opportunity to see several Swiss, German, Latvian, Danisch, and Norwegian talents play at this level. Many of these players spend the winter playing in leagues that are not high quality, so the U18 Worlds alllows them to strut their stuff for one time, and basically one time only.
The U18 Worlds was also very valuable in placing Russian on display, who may have been scouted fairly little during the winter because many parts of the Russian landscape are off the beaten path.
That's a non-factor now though.
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