2021 U18 World Hockey Championship Are Here - Here's What To Expect
The 2021 U18 World Hockey Championship kicks off this week in Texas. Due to the pandemic, the tournament has a heightened feel because so many NHL scouts weren’t able to see players this year. With so many leagues and teams opting out of the season, scouts haven’t been able to see players and what they’re capable of.
The 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship will be packed with scouts from around the world to see who the best U18 players are.
Sweden
Sweden’s most notable players include forward, Fabian Lysell and defenseman, Simon Edvinsson. Lysell is a great two-way player with phenomenal playmaking capabilities who draws a lot of attention. Edvinsson is a big, strong, and physical player who possesses a natural feel for the game.
Canada
Team Canada has 13 players on OHL rosters, a league that has officially opted out of this season. The top players to watch are Connor Bedard, Dylan Guenther, Brandt Clarke, and Mason McTavish. Bedard is considered to be one of the most prolific talents to come out of Canada since Connor McDavid.
United States
After winning the 2021 World Juniors, the U18 team will to emulate that success amongst themselves. Isaac Howard, Chaz Lucius, and Sasha Pastujov are headlining team USA’s U18 campaign and will look to add another medal to their already impressive resume over the past 20 years.
Russia
Looking to surpass their silver medal in the 2019 tournament, Russia enters with a strong roster of talent. Fyodor Svechkov and Nikita Chibrikov headline the team’s roster and both are projected to be late first-rounders.
Finland
Headlining the 2021 U18 Finnish team are two Samus. Samu Tuomaala and Samu Salminen will look to lead Finland to their fifth medal in six years.
Switzerland
The Swiss are projected to finish outside of the top five in this year’s tournament. Attilio Biasca is the Swiss’s best product and as long as he can stay healthy, he should be able to turn some heads at this year’s tournament.
Germany
Germany enters this tournament with similar expectations to the Swiss, they have some talent but nobody expects them to win. Bennet Rossmy and Yannik Proske are the team’s highest prospects and will have lots of scouts focused on them throughout the tournament.
Latvia
One of the more inexperienced teams in this tournament are the kids from Latvia. This is just their ninth U18 World Championship in the past 20 years but come in with fire and passion. Roberts Cjunskis and Darels Dukurs lead the way for Latvia and will look to keep them in the top pool for next year’s tournament.
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic has seen a decline in the level of talent over the past several years and many are beginning to question their youth programs. However, their top player, Stanislav Svozil, is a top-tier defenseman who should be a first-round pick in this year’s NHL Draft.
Belarus
With limited success at the U18 level, Belarus doesn’t want to hear what the critics have to say. They enter the tournament with no pressure, high spirits, and nothing to lose. Teams that play fast and loose traditionally perform well on the world stage so only time will tell if that’s the case for this year’s Belarus team. They’re led by forward, Nikita Tarasevich.
The tournament kicks off this week and will be a great feeling to see some young, top-tier talent. It will also bring a sense of normalcy back to our lives, similar to that of the 2021 World Junior Championship back in January. To see a lot of young talent in one location that hasn’t been seen in nearly a year is exciting and thrilling to think about.
