San Jose WJC Prospect Review

The San Jose Sharks sent 5 players to this years World Junior Championship tournament. Those 5 prospects were spread across 5 different nations, let's take a look at how they did:

Team Finland:

Brad Lambert RW 6’0” 183 lbs – Manitoba Moose (AHL)

5 GP – 1 G – 0 A – 1 P – 4 PIM - 0

Lambert started on the teams 1st line in game 1 but quickly found himself on the 3rd line due to his play. Watching him play, you can see the talent he possesses with the puck on his stick. But the shortfalls are not generally tolerated by coaching staffs and the decisions he’s making with the puck can be questionable. He often hangs onto the puck too long and stakes himself into a corner. How is it that his best U20 tournament was 2 years ago? Not a great tournament for the kid.

Grade: D

Team USA:

Ryan Chesley RHD 6’0” 201 lbs – University of Minnesota Golden Gophers (NCAA)

7 GP – 0 G – 1 A – 1 P – 0 PIM - +1

Chesley was paired with the offensive minded Lane Hutson for most of the tournament. He hasn’t been overly noticeable in the games I watched, he played a quiet game through the tournament. He wasn’t overly physical either which is one of his calling cards but was sound positionally and blocked lanes with an active stick. His skating looked good, and he made good quick decisions when pressure was applied from his opponents. Overall this was what was expected of him.

Grade: C

Team Sweden:

Liam Ohgren LW 6’1” 196 lbs – Djurgardens IF (HockeyAllsvenskan)

7 GP – 2 G – 0 A – 2 P – 0 PIM - -3

When the Djurgardens line was together they didn't look very dangerous, and the coach ended up taking Lekkerimaki off the line. He did save his best for the bronze metal game vs USA, getting 4 shots on net and scoring a goal in that wild game they ended up losing 7-8 in overtime. He played a heavy game and didn't look terrible like some of the other Swedish forwards, the compete level is there.

Grade: C

Team Slovakia:

Filip Mesar RW 5’10” 176 lbs – Kitchener Rangers (OHL)

5 GP – 2 G – 4 A – 6 P – 2 PIM - +3

Mesar had a fantastic tournament and tied for the team lead in points with 6. His high motor was on full display, you knew when Mesar was on the ice and he was in the thick of things on almost every shift. He was hounding puck carriers, turned up ice in a hurry and was displaying some great vision with the puck when he did gain the zone. One thing that stood out above all else, his zone entries are elite.

Grade: A

Team Czechia:

Jiri Kulich C/LW 6’0” 179 lbs – Rochester Americans (AHL)

7 GP – 7 G – 2 A – 9 P – 2 PIM - +10

Czechia surprised a lot of people and looked like one of the top teams in the tournament behind only Canada. It all started the first night with a huge upset of those top ranked Canadians. Kulich ended up with a hat trick against Austria and ended the tournament as Czechia’s leading goal scorer with 7. He’s a high IQ player and that really showed, sparking a comeback in the gold metal game that ended in heartbreak for Czechia.

Grade: A+