Three Red Wings prospects will be taking part in the World Junior Summer Showcase in Plymouth, Michigan this upcoming weekend and next week.
The WJSS is basically a summer start-up for prospective World Junior Championship participants from the United States, Finland and Sweden, who play in a 4-team format (with the U.S. team split up into “USA White” and “USA Blue“) for games on July 29th, 31st, and August 2nd and 4th (with tickets for the games available at USA Hockey Arena and online).
There are also morning practices from July 27th through August 4th that are open to the public, though there’s usually at least one day over the course of the 9-day period in which the teams agree to give their players a day off the ice.
Red Wings prospects Axel Sandin Pellikka, Anton Johansson (both playing defense for Sweden) and Trey Augustine (playing in goal for “USA White“) are all participating; as the Hockey News’s Sam Stockton notes, several top prospects for the 2024 NHL Draft are taking part as well.
I will be attending the tournament as accredited media, and while I may not make every practice, I’m definitely going to be there for every game, so I’m likely to start up a gas-and-snacks fund for the purposes of offsetting expenses. I hope that’s okay with all of you.
It’s a great event in terms of both getting to see some of the best 2023-drafted and 2024 (and 2025) NHL Draft prospects participate in competitive games at USA Hockey Arena, the tickets are insanely cheap, and it’s something of a sneak peek at some prospects who won’t be playing for the Red Wings at the fall prospect tournament due to their commitments elsewhere.
I will say this: you also get to “rub shoulders” with executives from the vast majority of the NHL’s 32 teams there as they’re scouting their drafted and potential prospects as well, and a lot of families from the 2023 U.S. Under-17 and Under-18 teams show up as well.
For example, Brady and Matthew Tkachuk and their dad, Keith, who scouts for the St. Louis Blues, were in attendance for every game at the 2021 WJSS, and they’d sign autographs and what-not while watching games. It’s a sort of informal setting, but as long as you approach your prospects politely, they’re likely to sign something or just talk for a bit.
I hope to see you there!
