Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis joins The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler in reviewing the performances of each and every one of the World Junior Championship’s participants, including the Red Wings’ four representatives in Ottawa:
Axel Sandin-Pellikka, D (Sweden): At his best, ASP was a star at this tournament once again. It all started with a four-point effort against Slovakia and another three points against the Swiss. He generated a lot of shots, and when Sweden needed him to perform, he often did. The one knock against him was some of the mistakes he made in transition. But on the flip side, he was always one of Sweden’s best shot-creators and was rarely not one of Sweden’s best individual players every single night. So even if scouts wanted to see a bit more from him, they still had a lot to like. It’s hard to truly explain, but basically: he was good, but I – and many others – wanted to see him dominate more than he did.
I guess the “recency bias” of watching Sandin Pellikka play so well in the SHL made scouts and others expect ASP to absolutely dominate among younger players, ignoring the fact that Sandin Pellikka is in fact a young player himself at 19, prone to ups and downs in performance.
I’m really disappointed in the fact that he finished second in tournament scoring, while clearly weighed down by wearing the captain’s “C” for Sweden, but nobody seems to recognize his status as the tournament’s best defenseman for a second year. Nothing’s enough.
Trey Augustine, G (USA): Augustine struggled after allowing eight goals over his first two games but quickly turned the tide. But after that, Augustine was rock solid, stealing the show in the games against Canada and Czechia. He’s now the winningest American goaltender in tournament history, and it’s easy to tell why. Sure, it’s his third tournament, but he covers the bottom of the net so well and remains so relaxed and focused in the crease.
As I said earlier this morning, Augustine’s “glove problems” involve the fact that he’s not wearing the catch glove which he prefers due to sponsorship issues. He’s still adjusting to the new catch glove.
Jesse Kiiskinen, RW (Finland): Kiiskinen started the tournament with a quiet showing against Canada before registering goals in each of the next three round-robin games. He had his best game against Slovakia in the quarters when he had two points, but he also had his best backchecking game that day, too. Kiiskinen was noticeably vibrant in the final, too. I really liked Kiiskinen’s play away from the puck – I thought he was always moving and making something happen. Overall, he got better with every passing game.
Kiiskinen is a spunky fellow who likes to score goals and go to the front of the net. He was impressive there. His defense needs work, though.
Max Plante, LW (USA): Plante had a solid showing with three points, but he also rarely lost a battle on a shift. That’s because he’s always moving and forcing you to make quick decisions on the fly. He’s a high-end playmaker who should play serious minutes next year – his ability to play with anyone and generate opportunities makes him solid.
Plante’s still only 18 and stands around 5’10” and 170-ish pounds, but he’s a plucky fellow who makes strong plays.
