With the pre-season over I thought this would be a good time to look ahead to next year when the World Cup of Hockey is set to take place. There has already been lots of speculation as to what the teams will look like and there will be much more as the season goes on. In the spirit of that I thought it would be interesting to see what Blue Jackets players have a chance at playing in that tournament next September.
The Players will be broken down into three categories: The Locks, Have a Chance and on the Bubble.
The Locks
Sergei Bobrovsky
The most obvious of all the players on the team is Bob. He is one of the
best goalies in the entire NHL and hands down the best Russian. He has represented Russia in the past two World Championships and was also the starter for the Olympic team in 2014.
Brandon Saad
Saad will be one of the leaders of the U23 young stars team. He just misses the cut-off date of September 15, 1992 (Saad’s birthday is October 27) making one of the oldest and most experienced players for the young stars team. He will be one of the go to players offensively and will bring big game experience having won two Stanley cups.
Have a Chance
Boone Jenner
Boone is about as close as you’re going to be to a lock without actually being one. A lot of it depends of how guys develop over this season. Sportsnet
recently projected Boone to make the team. However they left out Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett, both of whom I could see making that team with a big season. I think it will come down to what GM Peter Chiarelli values more: the NHL experience of Boone or the upside of others.
Ryan Johansen
Joey was
projected by NHL.com to make Team Canada’s roster. Looking at Canada’s team from the Olympics I see possibly just five forwards who won’t be returning (Marleau, Sharp, Kunitz, St. Louis and Carter). Two of those spots are already gone to Steven Stamkos and Tyler Seguin. Claude Giroux also should take one of those spots. Joey is going to be competing with guys like Taylor Hall, Logan Couture, Jordan Eberle, veterans like Joe Thornton, as well as Carter and Marleau who won’t be giving up their spots easily. He has a chance but it’s going to be tough.
Brandon Dubinsky
I'm not sure how much of a chance Dubi has of making Team USA, but he should be in consideration. He's competing with guys like Ryan Kesler, David Backes, Derek Stepan, and Paul Stastny all of whom made the Olympic roster in 2014. Dubinsky is one of the better two way centres in the league and could play great in a shutdown role for the US. Plus who wouldn’t want to see him go head-to-head with Crosby in a potential gold medal game.
On the Bubble
Ryan Murray
If Murray has a season like he did in 2013-14 he's a lock for the Young Stars team. He's competed internationally for Canada four times, most recently at the World Championships in 2012. However as we know all too well health is a serious concern here. If he can hold up over the full season this year there’s no reason for him not to be on the U23 team.
Fedor Tyutin
Tyutin has competed for Russia in the last three Olympics. The reason he's only on the bubble is his age. Tyutin is not getting any younger; he will be 33 by the time the World Cup comes around. He showed a few signs last year that might be starting to slow down. He has a shot at making the Russian team but it may be more as a veteran presence than anything else.
Alexander Wennberg
This one is a long shot but I think Wennberg could have a chance with a big year. I believe Wennberg is primed for a breakout season and if it happens he could compete for a spot on Team Sweden.
Nick Foligno
Had the World Cup been held this September there is no doubt in my mind Foligno would have been on the team. His 73 points were tied for 10th in the league and tops among American born players. If he can follow up last season with another big season this year he very easily could force his way onto Team USA.
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