How the top NHL prospects are playing at the 2024 IIHF World Championship

Credit: (Photo by Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff)

The kids have come to play.

Prior to the start of the 2024 IIHF World Championship, we looked at which NHL prospects were set to play in Czechia for the season-ending endurance event. A few of them have looked good, while others have been relegated to support roles.

It’s been interesting to watch, to say the least. A handful of players are competing against pros for the first time, while others have just continued to build upon their seasons in Europe.

Let’s look at 10 NHL prospects who have stood out over the past two weeks in Prague and Ostrava – positively or negatively:

Oliver Kapanen, C, Finland (Montreal Canadiens)

Kapanen’s production quieted down with no goals in his past three games, but he made noise with six goals over a three-game span against Great Britain, Norway, and Austria. His lack of offense since then can partly be attributed to a bigger issue with Finland – the inability to contend against higher-quality teams – but nobody has been better at directing pucks in around the net. He has worked very hard to retrieve pucks and play a two-way game. I know some Habs fans wonder if Kapanen can step into the NHL even by next year – he has an SHL deal, but if they can work something out and have him come to training camp I think he could put up a fight to earn a bottom-six position.

Samuel Hlavaj, G, Slovakia (Minnesota Wild)

While Minnesota’s prized goalie prospect, Jesper Wallstedt, has been watching from the sidelines, their newest signing, Hlavaj, has been putting up some great performances. He’s Slovakia’s No. 1 after starting strong with great games against USA and Poland. His best game came in a 40-save effort against Latvia, a 3-2 shootout loss, but he was a big piece of the Slovak puzzle. He has a 3-1 record with a .939 save percentage, making him one of the best goaltenders in the tournament.

David Špaček, D, Czechia (Minnesota Wild)

I wasn’t sure what to expect from Špaček, a 21-year-old with one year of AHL action under his belt. Given Czechia is the host, I assumed a younger guy like him wouldn’t get much ice time compared to the team’s veteran presence. He hasn’t played a ton, but he had two assists against Canada in his best game of the tournament. The son of former NHLer Jaroslav, Špaček just seems to come alive when he dons his nation’s colors and has given the team a true bottom-four puck-moving option. From an overall standpoint, I’ve been really impressed by the 2022 fifth-rounder.

Oscar Fisker Mølgaard, C, Denmark (Seattle Kraken)

Mølgaard’s had a slow start with no points in his first three games, but he had four in his final four games, highlighted by his two assists against Great Britain. His ice time stayed consistently in the 12-14-minute range, but it seemed like his chemistry with his linemates improved. Like always, he was great defensively, supported his linemates well and worked like a dog to chase after the puck.

Arttu Hyry, C, Finland (Dallas Stars)

Dallas snagged Hyry after he emerged as one of the top European free agents and I think they’d be impressed with what they’ve seen. He only has two goals and three points in seven games, but he’s been so disruptive in front of the net in a bottom-six role. At 6-foot-2 and 214 pounds, Hyry takes up space and is hard to move out of the way, and I feel like he does a good job of taking sightlines from goalies. He had a great year with Karpat, but if he cracks the Stars next year, it’s to grind his way into winning battles and getting the odd tip in front of the net.

Maksymilian Szuber, D, Germany (Utah)

Szuber has been solid in his second World Championship. He has two points in five games, but he’s not there to put points on the board. His job is to staple guys to the glass and keep them away from goaltender Philipp Grubauer. And even for someone who doesn’t carry a ton of offensive upside, I do like how often he’s been engaged around the net at times, often winning battles.

Gavin Brindley, RW, USA (Columbus Blue Jackets)

Brindley has only played four games and has just one goal, but I’ve actually thought Brindley has had a nice impact. He had a goal taken away against Latvia, but otherwise I feel like he has made the most of his limited ice time, with just one game with over 10 minutes. Since making his tournament debut against France on May 16, he has remained a fixture while coach John Hynes has rotated Will Smith and Ryan Leonard out of the lineup.

Trey Augustine, G, USA (Detroit Red Wings)

It was always going to be tough for Augustine to get any playing time when it was Alex Lyon and Alex Nedeljkovic in net. But when Lyon got hurt, and Nedeljkovic struggled, I was hoping to see Augustine get more starts. Instead, he had a couple of relief efforts and is 2-2 with a .929 save percentage while allowing just three goals total. I thought he was really good against Poland, a game that was definitely always going to be one-sided, but it was still dominated by good goaltending at both ends. Given he is one of the youngest goalies to ever play for the Americans at this tournament, I was impressed with Augustine’s composure in the jam-packed arenas in unfamiliar territory.

Will Smith, C, USA (San Jose Sharks)

So, Smith’s tournament has been a hot topic for fans. Let’s be clear: he was always going to play limited minutes as the youngest center on the team. It doesn’t make sense to have him be a fourth-line shutdown center because that doesn’t play to his strengths. And I imagine Smith and his management knew that, too. The big thing here was getting to play in-game action against pros for the first time in his career, which is a valuable experience on his own. I think anyone expecting him to play a big role every game – or even skate in every game – was being unrealistic. But having said that, I still don’t get why he hasn’t been given ice time alongside Ryan Leonard. All they’ve done at every level is dominate – and when you need scoring, why not just throw them together? That’s what I don’t get here.

Ryan Leonard, RW, USA (Washington Capitals)

Leonard registered an assist against Germany and then otherwise has either served as the 13th forward or been a healthy scratch. So, a lot of the same comments from Smith apply here. I wish they would play together, but, at the same time, when Leonard has been on the ice, he’s been trailing a lot as a support player instead of chasing down someone with the puck. I just wish I saw a harder, more consistent effort when he was on the ice. But, again, his opportunities would always be limited as a 19-year-old with no pro experience.

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