WJC: Tournament standouts and dissapointments so far?

[Outofbodyinhungary]

Okuliar as well not been that good

 

[LeProspector]

Pinto has impressed with his ability to park in front of the goalie and be a hound on loose pucks.

I can see why Stutzle is as highly regarded as he is. I loved him before the tournament but the way he has been Germany’s go to guy at his age has impressed the hell out of me.

Oliver Wahlstrom has been a disappointment, I expect more out of a guy as highly regarded as he is.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

The dissappointing twitter fans bashing knee injured kid due to skipping games in a completely meaningless kid's tournament.

This tourney makes less headlines than women's hockey anywhere outside Canada and the games mean literally less than the allstar game in the NHL.

100% false. Nobody should be playing injured but you don't need to diminish the importance of the tournament to make that point. You might not give a damn about it but that doesn't mean the kids playing in it and other people don't.

 

[Unfriendly Ghost]

I don't care about "end to end rushes". I'm mainly talking about his footspeed. It's fine, not great. About leading the tournament in points, playing 27 minutes/game with top PP-minutes will put you in a good position to rack up some assists. He's not driving the offense and like I said, the minutes are making him look better than his actual play. A guy like Siegenthaler looked quite similar on the Swiss team a few years ago.

You're comparing Seider to Siegenthaler? Who has basically no offensive ability whatsoever? And you're comparing Siegenthaler's performance as a 19 year old, having done nothing in two prior years at the WJC, to Seider's at 18. Well, no holes in this argument.

 

[JabbaJabba]

Thomson has been that bad?

He has been taking a lot of dumb penalties and making bad plays.

 

[SuperScript29]

I don't care about "end to end rushes". I'm mainly talking about his footspeed. It's fine, not great. About leading the tournament in points, playing 27 minutes/game with top PP-minutes will put you in a good position to rack up some assists. He's not driving the offense and like I said, the minutes are making him look better than his actual play. A guy like Siegenthaler looked quite similar on the Swiss team a few years ago.

Playing 27 minutes a game vs high end competition and being on a team that is being shelled with all these goals per game yet you only come out as a -1 is actually remarkable for a defenseman.

It's very clear, when Seider is on the ice the competition has a hard time scoring. Granted we're talking about 3 games here, but the point being is the kid demonstrated exactly what he was advertised to be, which is a high end defenseman with an impressive set of skills. If you don't see him as one of the best dmen so far then I don't know what you're watching exactly.

 

[Hockey Stick]

Byfield and Veleno for Canada as disappointing

 

[NyQuil]

Byfield and Veleno for Canada as disappointing

I suppose.

With Veleno missing for one of three games, and the Russian debacle taking up another one, it's a bit difficult to evaluate him IMO. I thought he was decent in the USA game.

He's going to have to do more if this team is going to make any noise in the playoffs.

I definitely expected to see more from Byfield given his prospective draft position and hype, but he's pretty young.

 

[pled]

can anyone believe Raty is just a 2021 prospect? in 2 years he's gonna be even more amazing.

Askarov doesn't seem like the 3rd overall hockeyprospect wants him to be

 

[gwh]

100% false. Nobody should be playing injured but you don't need to diminish the importance of the tournament to make that point. You might not give a damn about it but that doesn't mean the kids playing in it and other people don't.

Kids play, sometimes get a goal then some hot choco. Kids hockey is important to the kids and pretty much to nobody else.

The importance of the tournament? Well none, outside NHL draft discussions.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Kids play, sometimes get a goal then some hot choco. Kids hockey is important to the kids and pretty much to nobody else.

The importance of the tournament? Well none, outside NHL draft discussions.

Like I said it is perfectly fine if you don't care about it. That doesn't mean everyone has or should have the same opinion you have.

 

[Lemmiwinks]

Kids play, sometimes get a goal then some hot choco. Kids hockey is important to the kids and pretty much to nobody else.

The importance of the tournament? Well none, outside NHL draft discussions.

Oof... rough take. For these kids it’s literally the tournament of their lives. It’s the marquee hockey event over the holidays and likely their first internationally broadcasted showcase. It’s huge for them, and that’s what makes it so much fun to watch.
If that’s not your thing then that’s fine, but u don’t have to be a wet blanket in a WJC thread lol

 

[Choralone]

Plus the NHL doesn't mean much more than the WJC to most Americans, honestly. That doesn't mean oddball Americans like me can't enjoy both.

 

[Czechboy]

Czech perspective:

Mysak has played better than expected and I think this will help him go in first round
Pitlyk has underperformed a little IMO
Kubicek should get drafted after this in the later rounds
Zabransky is playing well above his paygrid
Jenik was looking awesome and our best performer pre injury
Dostal has been okay but not as good as last year (also injured)
Teply is also playing very well and has been noticeable
Pekar has been very inconsistent
Has is also playing very well
Klikorka was on zero radars prior to this tourney but he's been very good to be honest ..

 

[Czechboy]

From a different team... the German's have impressed the hell out of me.. Reichel, Stutzl, Peterka, Seider and Bokk all look to be NHLers one day.

 

[Czechboy]

Romanov is my fav from Russia and he looks great every game I see him in... I think Montreal made a great pick to get him. Zegras is off the charts good. I love Kalilyev and his shot. There is a Canadian that can hammer too... Foudy maybe? Something tells me I'll know his name better after tomorrows game.lol

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Romanov is my fav from Russia and he looks great every game I see him in... I think Montreal made a great pick to get him. Zegras is off the charts good. I love Kalilyev and his shot. There is a Canadian that can hammer too... Foudy maybe? Something tells me I'll know his name better after tomorrows game.lol

Bahl on defense. 6'7 240 pounds. Really nailed an American player on Boxing Day.

 

[Czechboy]

Bahl on defense. 6'7 240 pounds. Really nailed an American player on Boxing Day.

It's not Bahl... I know who he is becasue he was part of the Hall trade and I wanted my Oil to get Hall. Does Nolan Foote perhaps possess a cannon of a shot? I mean, I know they all do but I feel like, maybe Foote, has some nitro infused shooting?

 

[Sojourn]

Be really curious to see how this changes, or if it changes, after the medal round.

 

[57special]

Like Seider, Zegras looks great, Romanov, too. Kaliyev has that one very important skill...putting the puck in the net. Lafreniere, obviously. I find Cozens noticeable, and think Khovanov has been OK, but that's probably because my team drafted him...Russian forwards look pretty good...fast and strong, but I can't really name one that wows me consistently. Stutzle and Peterka looked good. Veleno and Bokk look interesting in the same way that Cozens does. Not able to finish, but promising.

I think Hayton has looked reasonably good, as has Foote, but nothing special.

Byfield hasn't done much for me. Hate to name goaltenders on the strength of just one game, but hey, laying an egg in a pressure situation is not OK. Askarov and Daws...especially the former, as the expectations for him were off the charts...Hofer had a really good game against Germany, who are a damn good team.

I have been mystified with some of the coaching choices by Sandelin.

Didn't get to see any of the Group A games. Can't wait to see the Swedes, and a to a lesser extent, the Finns. I am expecting a lot from the Raymonds and Soderstroms, among many others.

 

[TopC0rner]

Pekar has been very inconsistent

I don't know why, but Pekar looks slow. I'm not sure if he's injured but he was playing better back in October. Also from the Czech, I've been impressed by Plasek. Better playmaker than I thought.

 

[snipes]

Kids play, sometimes get a goal then some hot choco. Kids hockey is important to the kids and pretty much to nobody else.

The importance of the tournament? Well none, outside NHL draft discussions.

Viewership numbers suggest otherwise but okay.

 

[snipes]

It's not Bahl... I know who he is becasue he was part of the Hall trade and I wanted my Oil to get Hall. Does Nolan Foote perhaps possess a cannon of a shot? I mean, I know they all do but I feel like, maybe Foote, has some nitro infused shooting?

Yes you’re thinking of Foote, he can absolutely rip the puck. He had a nice bar down goal today.

 

[SI90]

A lot of the big disappointments have been mentioned but I'll add that I've been very underwhelmed by Oliver Wahlstrom. At times he's looked almost Virtanen-esque in the way he's trying to do too much and not involving his teammates. Also have to agree with others on Byram. At the draft I thought there were talks of him being close to the NHL but haven't seen anything like that from him yet. And Jared McIsaac is just bad, I don't know what my expectations were but yeesh.

Zegras has obviously been a stud. Also really impressed by Zac Jones.

Wahlstrom has 5pts in 4 games and is playing very physical along with playing at both ends. He’s getting some stance sand looks. Because he’s a pro people want him to score multiple goals per game but he’s been fine.

 

[Gold Standard]

Veleno has been disappointing, and missing a game due to a suspension is part of it. It all adds up.

As for Byfield, I never expect anything from 17 year olds at this tournament. much the same as Lafreniere last year. so, If they perform well, it's just an added bonus. If he has a slow start to his pro gig next year, I just hope he's with a team whose coach/GM are not stupid enough to have him sitting on a barstool in the pressbox munching on popcorn for the year.

And as for the other 2 players I had questions about coming in, Foote and McIsaac… Foote has been better than expected. and McIsaac? still not a fan.