Toronto Maple Leafs 2014 first rounder William Nylander and 2015 fifth rounder Dmytro Timashov were among 26 players selected by Sweden for their preliminary roster of the upcoming 2016 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship later this month.
Prospect Kasperi Kapanen (Pittsburgh’s top pick in 2014) was also chosen by Finland for the tournament that begins on December 26 in Helsinki.
According to reporter Juha Hiitela , Kapanen will be heading home for Finland’s preliminary camp next week and it is expected that Nylander would follow suit after the Toronto Marlies three-game weekend in Utica, Syracuse and against the Comets at Ricoh Coliseum on Sunday.
The trio join 2015 top pick Mitch Marner and second rounder Travis Dermott, who will head to Team Canada’s selection camp at the MasterCard Center in Etobicoke, ON on December 10. Martins Dzierkals left his junior club (Rouyn-Noranda) Sunday for Europe to help Latvia to qualify for the 2017World Junior in Toronto/Montreal.
Long Island native Jeremy Bracco was expected to be the sixth Leafs prospect to have a chance to play on the world stage, but the 18-year-old winger was not among the 16 forwards selected by Team USA on Monday.
“It sucks. I thought I deserved to at least go to camp and show myself.… Bracco said on Monday. “It doesn’t really make sense to me.…
Bracco nearly made the 2015 World Junior club last December, was second in scoring behind presumptive #1 pick Auston Matthews at the Under-18’s in Switzerland last April and attended Team USA’s summer camp in Lake Placid, NY in August, but the speedy forward may have fallen victim to the US penchant of selecting role players for depth positions, similar to what the US Olympic team did for Vancouver in 2010.
Former Leafs coach Ron Wilson (who led Team USA in 2010 and will be behind the bench in Helsinki) had veteran Chris Drury as a penalty killer and faceoff specialist instead of going with a younger scoring forward.
Sportsology and Hockeybuzz contributor Russ Cohen believes that Bracco was omitted in spite of being a top end offensive talent and a weapon on the power play in favor of someone like Notre Dame University forward Anders Bjork, who is more likely to be utilized in a special teams role.
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Is that Mike Myers wearing a Dave Keon jersey on SNL or is it a Miroslav Frycer sweater????
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