The re-staged 2022 World Junior Championship will take place between Tuesday, August 9th and Saturday, August 20th in Edmonton, and IIHF.com and NHL.com will be two very good places to glean news from during that time.
Prior to the tournament, IIHF.com’s Chapin Landvogt posted a set of players who he expects to step up as World Junior Championship “rookies,” and one of the lesser-known Swedish Red Wings prospects earned a nod:
William Wallinder – D – The goaltending is the big story for Team Sweden, seeing as how all three nominees would be the likely starter for a handful of teams in this tournament, but the gigantic 193 cm Wallinder is a shot-blocking machine who’ll help his last line of defence see fewer pucks. He’ll also have little problem being one of the tourney’s better breakout defenders. Already the beneficiary of a ton of professional experience, the 20-year-old Detroit Red Wings prospect shot up the prospect chart during the 21/22 season, not only seeing action in 60 games for contender Rogle Angelholm, but also contributing 20 points along the way.
Continued; Wallinder is going to be fun to watch because the Rogle BK defenseman, who is a lanky 6’4″ and 190 pounds, has really stepped up over the past season (his first full SHL campaign), and player development surprises are definitely in store throughout the tournament.
In case you forgot the 9 Wings prospects taking part in the tournament, let’s go through the list. I’m going to put an asterisk next to the names of players who will be able to take part in the Red Wings’ prospect tournament and main camp this fall:
TEAM USA:
Carter Mazur, forward: Still very lanky at 6′ and an EliteProspects-listed 170 pounds, the instigating 20-year-old will be taking part in his first World Junior Championship. He’s a plucky, competitive player who possesses a scoring touch, and he was used as a top-six player by USA coach Nate Leaman during the Americans’ pre-tournament games.
Red Savage, center: Savage is definitely a fourth-line forward in the making, and the 19-year-old center/left wing is only 5’11” and 181 pounds, but he’s super-competitive, and he embraces his supporting role. He scored two goals during the Americans’ final pre-tournament game, but Savage will mostly impress you with his “compete level.”
TEAM CANADA
Sebastian Cossa*, goaltender: The Red Wings’ top goaltending prospect is in a bit of a pickle here. When the WJC was preemptively held in Red Deer last December (and was cancelled due to COVID infections), the 6’6,” 209-pound goaltender wound up playing behind both Brett Brochu and Dylan Garand.
It’s going to be very hard for Cossa to succeed Garand as the team’s starter after Garand earned the Canadian coaches’ trust last December, but Cossa will have to attempt to earn some starts in back-to-back situations through the preliminary round and go from there. He’s obviously an elite goaltending prospect already, but he may have to “suck it up for the team” in Edmonton.
Donovan Sebrango*, defenseman: Sebrango, 20, is a real “ultimate competitor.” The 6’1,” 194-pound defenseman is, a lot like Mazur, willing to out-battle opponents by getting under their skin, but Sebrango does so in a more subdued, workmanlike fashion. He’s a tough customer and is expected to bring his 96 games’ worth of AHL experience to a lineup of 18-to-20-year-olds who will follow Sebrango’s example as he’s wearing an alternate captain’s “A” on his shoulder.
TEAM FINLAND
Eemil Viro*, defenseman: Viro will attempt to “make the jump” to North American ice this fall, and the 6,’ 165-pound defenseman has two-and-a-half seasons’ worth of pro experience under his belt with TPS Turku of the Finnish Liiga as a 20-year-old. A middle-of-the-lineup defenseman, his pro savvy will be leaned upon as the workmanlike Finns attempt to win a bunch of 2-1 games (all Finnish national teams tend to play “trap hockey” to a tee). Viro may not dazzle you, but he’s dependable and steady, if still a little too skinny for his own good.
TEAM SWEDEN
Simon Edvinsson*, defenseman: Of all the Wings’ prospects, Edvinsson is the one carrying the highest expectations upon his shoulders, and he’s probably going to be the most noticeable one on the ice. 6’6″ and 209 pounds, but still with room to grow on and off the ice at only 19, the savvy, smart and smooth-skating Edvinsson is ready to challenge for an NHL job this fall after posting a point-every-other-game in the SHL this past season with the mighty Frolunda HC.
In theory, anyway, Edvinsson has a season-plus of pro experience under his belt, he’s got the highest skill level of any of the Wings’ prospects in terms of his skating, shooting, passing, overall mobility and ability to read the game at a high pace, and he’s going to be Team Sweden’s #1 defenseman. That gives him a head start on his fellow prospects ahead of a difficult prospect tournament and main training camp in September, mostly, but in the interim, he’s going to help lead the stacked Swedes as they try to bring home gold from Edmonton.
William Wallinder, defenseman: Aforementioned, 6’4″ and 190 pounds, he just turned 20 on July 28th, and the Rogle BK defenseman is very competent in terms of his all-round game, he’s going to play in his second full SHL campaign for Rogle this fall, and he’s one of those middle-of-the-lineup players whose own development may push him toward top-pair defenseman’s status in a year or two. We’ll see what he does in Edmonton to impress.
Theodor Niederbach, center: Lanky but skinny at 5’11” and an EliteProspects-listed 174 pounds, Niederbach is trying something different by moving from Frolunda HC to Rogle as a 20-year-old. He wants to earn more playing time and display more offense after a season mostly spent as Frolunda’s 3rd or 4th-line center, skating in a bit of a straitjacket as a defensively-inclined player. Niederbach is an elite play-maker and a very solid shooter, he skates well and what he does lack more than anything is the kind of inherent self-confidence and swagger that yields pucks not bouncing off his stick or fanned passes. He’s got a bit of ego strength to work upon, and the World Juniors provide a perfect preseason tournament to build upon going into a pivotal SHL campaign.
TEAM CZECHIA
Jan Bednar*, goaltender: Bednar may have the most to gain or lose over the next two weeks, because he’s probably going to start for the Czechs. 19 until August 26th, the 6’4,” 201-pound netminder for the Acadie-Bathurst Titan of the QMJHL is superbly-talented but incredibly inconsistent, and his 28-14-and-4 record in the Q, with a 2.72 GAA and .912 save percentage, sort of speaks toward the fact that Bednar either gives up a goal and plays his head off, or he gives up four or five thanks to some wonky lapses in concentration.
If he takes part in the prospect tournament, both he and Cossa have to overcome inconsistencies in their technical and mental games, and that’s going to be the biggest question for me going into September.
