2024 World Junior Championship Preview: Team Canada
It’s gold or bust. Always. No exceptions.
Expectations are always high for Canada to perform, much higher than any other nation. With 20 of the team’s 35 medals coming on the top step of the podium, it’s an important tournament for the nation to get right. There’s a reason why the tournament is almost always in Canada, including the past three years.
But it feels different this year. They’re headed to Sweden, and, for once, they’re not the favorites this time. With some key NHLers missing the event to live out their dreams, Canada isn’t running at all cylinders. Perhaps the fanbase was spoiled with how Connor Bedard and company dominated the show in Halifax. And maybe that’s why they’re narrow win over Czechia meant so much on home ice. Even with some of the best prospects in the world, it’s never easy.
Canada is seeking gold for the third time in a row, something no team has managed to do since they won five between 2005-09. They’ll have a difficult round-robin alongside the likes of Sweden and Finland, but that’ll help out in the crossover round, at least. Still, you can’t take anything for granted in a touranment like this, no matter how much skill you’re blessed with.
Goaltenders
Ah, the crease. Canada’s hot topic pretty much every year. This group rarely seems to have a clear-cut No. 1 goaltender, and this tournament is no different – especially after cutting the OHL’s reigning goalie of the year in North Bay’s Domenic DiVincentiis.
Did any goaltender stand out enough to earn the No. 1 gig out of camp? It doesn’t seem like it, but coach Alan Letang did mention Mathis Rousseau‘s name when discussing who stood out during the two-game exhibition slate. The 19-year-old double-undrafted keeper has been lights out with Halifax this year, going 16-3-2 with three shutouts and a .934 save percentage. And it’s not just a fluke, either, having had a great run again last year. Rousseau is no stranger to overcoming challenges to win games, so the pressure of leading Canada’s world junior team could be good for him. He’s small at 5-foot-11, but he’s a battler that moves quick. At this event, that might work out just fine.
Samuel St-Hilaire, another undrafted prospect out of the QMJHL, played his way onto the roster during camp. St-Hilaire is the biggest goalie at 6-foot-2, and he’s having a strong sophomore campaign with the Sherbrooke Phoenix. He had a pair of great efforts in camp, so it’ll be interesting to see if they ride the hot hand here.
The lone drafted goaltender on the squad is Scott Ratzlaff (Buffalo Sabres). He was downright dominant at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, making him the only goalie of the three with national team experience. His stats have taken a nosedive after an excellent year en route to a WHL title in 2022-23, but the Seattle Thunderbirds are in the midst of a rebuild – he’s doing the best he can. I thought Ratzlaff was the best of the three goalies in camp, personally, but he’s also the youngest. Could that play a part in whether he starts or not? We’ll see.
The good thing? All three goaltenders looked good in camp. With three pretournament games next week, we’ll see which name can take advantage of the opportunity.
Defensemen
Korchinski would have been a nice addition, but alas.
Fortunately for Canada, they’re going to have no shortage of puck-moving options, which is why leaving off someone such as Ty Nelson was an easy call. It all starts with Denton Mateychuk (Columbus Blue Jackets), who enters the pretournament having recorded a point in 23 of his 24 games, with the lone goose egg coming on the final day before he traveled to camp. Maybe he was preoccupied, but Mateychuk’s ability to dominate the puck-possession game from the point has been so important for the Moose Jaw Warriors, and it will be extra important for Canada as the team’s No. 1 D-man.
If Mateychuk holds down the first power-play unit, I could see Tristan Luneau (Anaheim Ducks) anchoring the second group. He’s the only defenseman with NHL experience on this squad, having spent the entire year to date playing pro. He hasn’t played a lot, though, and didn’t participate in the two exhibition games against USPORTS, but I have no doubt he’ll play a huge role and eat minutes for Canada.
It was good to see Tanner Molendyk (Nashville Predators) dress for the second exhibition game after dealing with a knee injury throughout most of camp. He looked quick, and made some smart plays that helped solidify his spot on the roster. After a decent start last year, Molendyk’s offensive play has allowed him to standout with Saskatoon this year, and this could be a great opportunity for him to get experience before potentially taking over the No. 1 D-role in 2025.
Two defensemen I wouldn’t want to mess with are 6-foot-7 Maveric Lamoureux (Arizona Coyotes) and 6-foot-5 Noah Warren (ANA). Lamoureux has really come into his own this year and is one of the more intimidating defensive prospects in the CHL today. I thought Warren was a standout at camp, and perhaps the best defenseman, period. I don’t know if we’ll see them on the ice together, but I’d hate to have to match up against them.
Rounding out the group are Jake Furlong (San Jose Sharks) and Oliver Bonk (Philadelphia Flyers). Furlong impressed with a two-goal performance in Game 1 before displaying a more steady, balanced effort in Game 2. Bonk, meanwhile, shut things down and kept things reliable. They’ll likely act as depth options, but they both proved during camp they’re capable of some great defending.
Forwards
No Zach Benson? No Adam Fantilli? That’s fine. Canada has Matt Poitras (Boston Bruins). The final player added to Canada’s roster, Poitras’ NHL experience will come up handy as Canada looks to chase gold. Poitras was originally projected to make Canada’s world junior team, but a strong training camp kept the Guelph Storm forward around in the NHL. While he has been a healthy scratch on occasion, he was humming along at a 40-point pace with 13 points in 27 games. Poitras gives the already deep Canadian squad extra center depth, and he might be the most important player in red, white and black.
The youngest player on the team, Macklin Celebrini, is also one of Canada’s best. Whether he plays center or on the wing, it doesn’t matter. Celebrini was Canada’s best player at the U-18 World Championship, looked great at the camp last week, and, above all else, is the top prospect for the 2024 NHL Draft. All eyes will be on Celebrini, who has big shoes to fill after seeing what Bedard did a year ago. For more on Celebrin’s impact, click here.
The highest-profile NHL prospect on the roster is Matthew Savoie (Buffalo Sabres). A preseason injury kept him out of action early, but he looked great in the AHL and even made his NHL debut, too. But after returning back to the WHL with Wenatchee, Savoie put an absolute beating on the rest of the league with 24 points in just 11 games – putting him on pace for 100 points over the rest of the season. He’s one of the CHL’s most prolific offensive threats, and should factor into the scoring race in Sweden.
Sticking in Wenatchee, Conor Geekie (Arizona Coyotes) will be relied on heavily to bring speed, physicality, and net-front presence. The 6-foot-4 forward is having a career year with the Wild, so the timing is good. This is his first time representing Canada in any international event, but he’s one of the most well-rounded forward prospects in the game today.
Jordan Dumais (CBJ) had a quiet camp and was removed from the second game due to a minor injury. But the 19-year-old is one of the most dominant forwards we’ve seen come through the QMJHL in quite some time, . Dumais entered camp with 47 points in 21 games, putting him in the top five in scoring despite missing the start of the year due to an injury. That’s a 126-point pace this year, which is down from his 140-point campaign with Halifax last year. It’ll be interesting to see how he’s managed in the lineup because he can be downright devastating with the puck.
From there, the scoring options run deep. Fraser Minten (Toronto Maple Leafs) played well enough to start the NHL season, but it’s his versatile skill set that’ll shine through. Brayden Yager (Pittsburgh Penguins) was one of Canada’s most engaged forwards in camp, while Carson Rehkopf (Seattle Kraken) brings size and offensive awareness to the table. Matthew Wood (NSH) had some iffy moments during the two exhibition games, but was still one of Canada’s best players, and his NCAA experience could prove helpful against pro competition in this tournament. Plus, he was dominant alongside Celebrini at the U-18 World Championship.
The lone returning player is Owen Beck (Montreal Canadiens), who’ll serve as a catalyst in the bottom six. Beck can score, but he’s a faceoff wizard, plays a strong defensive game and isn’t afraid to get physical. He’d be a perfect fit alongside Owen Allard, who played his way onto the team as a longshot thanks to his hard work ethic, high speed and great defensive play.
There’s also Easton Cowan (TOR), a player that continues to defy expectations and play better than most scouts expected. I’d like to see a lot more urgency in his game than we saw at the camp, but he’s having a good year. And then there’s Nate Danielson (Detroit Red Wings) who’ll need to rebound after a quiet showing in Oakville. But given how well he played in the regular season with Detroit, we know he can be a reliable presence in this lineup.
2024 NHL Draft
Celebrini is the top prospect in the draft, but that hasn’t always meant we’ll a player of that caliber on Team Canada. But Celebrini was not only a lock to make this team, but he was always going to be one of Canada’s best players, no matter the impact by NHLers.
In terms of overage options, don’t count out Allard. While I’m not sure if there’s much of an NHL impact there, scouts liked what they’ve seen this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was taken finally after getting passed over twice.
Projection
People were quick to write this team off because of the lack of high-end talent and no clear No. 1 goaltender. They said similar things about the 2020 team, too, and they put things together on the bigger ice and made it work. I’d hesitate to bet against Canada, although they’re definitely not my favorite. They’re going to factor into the medal chase, and with this team’s identity being about hard-workers fighting for every chance they can get, that could come up big against some of the other powerhouses like USA and Sweden. I’d be surprised if they don’t head home with at least a medal around their necks.
Round-Robin Schedule
Local/ET Time
Dec. 26 vs. Finland – 14:30/8:30 AM ET
Dec. 27 vs. Latvia – 19:30/1:30 PM ET
Dec. 29 vs. Sweden – 19:30/1:30 PM ET
Dec. 31 vs. Germany – 19:30/1:30 PM ET
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World Junior Championship Previews by Steven Ellis
Dec. 12: Team Sweden
Dec. 13: Team Norway
Dec. 14: Team Latvia
Dec. 15: Team Switzerland
Dec. 17: Team Finland
Dec. 18: Team Germany