Fans have filled both arenas this year, a welcome sight that hopefully indicates life is returning to normal.
photo: Matt Zambonin / IIHF
Is there more?
The Connor Bedard watch continues on several fronts. The golden record would be if he could catch Peter Forsberg and record 31 points this tournament. He currently has 21 with two games left, so that’s doubtful given these games are going to be the toughest. But, hey, never say never.
Forsberg is also the all-time scorer with 42 points over two tournaments. Second is Robert Reichel (TCH, 40), then Pavel Bure (URS, 39), and Alexander Mogilny (URS) and Esa Tikkanen (FIN), both with 35. All of these are in play with Bedard now. To date, the 17-year-old has played in 14 U20 games and has 34 points. His game-by-game points totals are: 1, 4, 2, 2, 1, 2, 0, 1, 0, 1, 7, 6, 4, 3.
Been there
Only two of the ten coaches at this year’s World Juniors have actually played the tournament. Tobias Abstreiter (GER) played in 1988 and ’89 and Marco Bayer (SUI) played in 1991 and ‘92. Artis Abols (LAT) played in four senior Worlds between 1999 and 2002.
Whistle while you work
Anssi Salonen is the only referee here who has worked a U20 gold-medal game (2017). Michael Campbell did the bronze in 2020 and 2021, and there are three refs making their top-level debuts here—Graeden Hamilton (CAN), Tomas Hronsky (SVK), and Riley Yerkovich (USA). As far as the lines are concerned, Clement Goncalves (FRA) and Spencer Knox (CAN) are rookies who have worked their way up to this opportunity.
Like father, like son
As well, Daniel Konc (SVK) is here working the lines. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because his father, also Daniel Konc, worked many top-level IIHF tournaments, notably the 2010 World Championship, and three each of World Juniors and Men’s U18s.
Very odd
Switzerland became the only team ever to qualify for the quarter-finals without winning a game in regulation. And they also became the first team to win as many as three games in OT/PSS during the preliminary round since the current format was adopted in 2007.
No for goals
American defender Ryan Ufko has no goals and seven assists this year, and two others have no goals and five assists: Matyas Sapovaliv (CZE), and Olen Zellweger (CAN). This recalls the weird numbers posted by Trevor Zegras during his junior days with USA. He was 0+9 at the 2019 U18 and 0+9 again at the 2020 U20. Then, in 2021, the passer became scorer and superstar. At that year’s U20, Zegras had seven goals in as many games and 18 points to lead all players, and was named tournament MVP as the U.S. won gold.
Quick on the draw
Canada’s Logan Stankoven has been sensational on faceoffs. He has won 49 puck tosses and lost only 17, good for a 74.2 per cent success rate.
Fans are back
It’s been a tough couple of years for the World Juniors. The 2021 event was played in Edmonton without fans. The 21/22 edition was cancelled, and the re-scheduled 2022 was played in Edmonton again in August, resulting in dismal crowds. But with Covid on the wane and the tournament in Halifax and Moncton, attendance is once again on a footing one expects from the event when played in Canada. The hosts are selling out in Halifax, and the daytime games averaged more than 7,500. Moncton has a smaller capacity at the Avenir Centre (8,800 compared to 10,400 at the Scotiabank Centre) but has also drawn well for Group B games. Total attendance is expected to be over 220,000.
TOI
Slovakia’s Simon Nemec is the leader in time on ice so far. He has been playing an astounding 26:14 per game for the Slovaks.
No more funny business
Canadians tried lacrosse moves twice in their opening loss to Czechia (Adam Fantilli, Connor Bedard) and haven’t tried one since. Could be there’s a connection between trying the fancy move, which perhaps conveys a feeling of being too cocky, when the focus should be of a more serious nature at the World Juniors. Canada hasn’t lost since, so there’s that.
Lots of blue ice
Adam Svoboda (CZE) set the single tournament record for goalies’ minutes played in 1997 when he played 428:27. That number might finally be challenged. Sweden’s Carl Lindbom has played every minute for Sweden, which translates to 301:35 minutes played. Tomas Suchanek of Czechia has been equally busy, also charting exactly 301:35 minutes. And, Patriks Berzins of Latvia has clocked 303:48 so far.
Slap happy
The World Juniors is a sensational level of hockey, but it is clearly one step below the NHL, where the players are even faster, bigger, and more skilled. One thing that happens regularly at the junior level and never in the NHL—a player slapping his stick on the ice calling for a pass. There has been plenty of that this year, and there’s a term for it that is quintessentially Canadian—beaver tailing.
The Connor Bedard watch continues on several fronts. The golden record would be if he could catch Peter Forsberg and record 31 points this tournament. He currently has 21 with two games left, so that’s doubtful given these games are going to be the toughest. But, hey, never say never.
Forsberg is also the all-time scorer with 42 points over two tournaments. Second is Robert Reichel (TCH, 40), then Pavel Bure (URS, 39), and Alexander Mogilny (URS) and Esa Tikkanen (FIN), both with 35. All of these are in play with Bedard now. To date, the 17-year-old has played in 14 U20 games and has 34 points. His game-by-game points totals are: 1, 4, 2, 2, 1, 2, 0, 1, 0, 1, 7, 6, 4, 3.
Been there
Only two of the ten coaches at this year’s World Juniors have actually played the tournament. Tobias Abstreiter (GER) played in 1988 and ’89 and Marco Bayer (SUI) played in 1991 and ‘92. Artis Abols (LAT) played in four senior Worlds between 1999 and 2002.
Whistle while you work
Anssi Salonen is the only referee here who has worked a U20 gold-medal game (2017). Michael Campbell did the bronze in 2020 and 2021, and there are three refs making their top-level debuts here—Graeden Hamilton (CAN), Tomas Hronsky (SVK), and Riley Yerkovich (USA). As far as the lines are concerned, Clement Goncalves (FRA) and Spencer Knox (CAN) are rookies who have worked their way up to this opportunity.
Like father, like son
As well, Daniel Konc (SVK) is here working the lines. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because his father, also Daniel Konc, worked many top-level IIHF tournaments, notably the 2010 World Championship, and three each of World Juniors and Men’s U18s.
Very odd
Switzerland became the only team ever to qualify for the quarter-finals without winning a game in regulation. And they also became the first team to win as many as three games in OT/PSS during the preliminary round since the current format was adopted in 2007.
No for goals
American defender Ryan Ufko has no goals and seven assists this year, and two others have no goals and five assists: Matyas Sapovaliv (CZE), and Olen Zellweger (CAN). This recalls the weird numbers posted by Trevor Zegras during his junior days with USA. He was 0+9 at the 2019 U18 and 0+9 again at the 2020 U20. Then, in 2021, the passer became scorer and superstar. At that year’s U20, Zegras had seven goals in as many games and 18 points to lead all players, and was named tournament MVP as the U.S. won gold.
Quick on the draw
Canada’s Logan Stankoven has been sensational on faceoffs. He has won 49 puck tosses and lost only 17, good for a 74.2 per cent success rate.
Fans are back
It’s been a tough couple of years for the World Juniors. The 2021 event was played in Edmonton without fans. The 21/22 edition was cancelled, and the re-scheduled 2022 was played in Edmonton again in August, resulting in dismal crowds. But with Covid on the wane and the tournament in Halifax and Moncton, attendance is once again on a footing one expects from the event when played in Canada. The hosts are selling out in Halifax, and the daytime games averaged more than 7,500. Moncton has a smaller capacity at the Avenir Centre (8,800 compared to 10,400 at the Scotiabank Centre) but has also drawn well for Group B games. Total attendance is expected to be over 220,000.
TOI
Slovakia’s Simon Nemec is the leader in time on ice so far. He has been playing an astounding 26:14 per game for the Slovaks.
No more funny business
Canadians tried lacrosse moves twice in their opening loss to Czechia (Adam Fantilli, Connor Bedard) and haven’t tried one since. Could be there’s a connection between trying the fancy move, which perhaps conveys a feeling of being too cocky, when the focus should be of a more serious nature at the World Juniors. Canada hasn’t lost since, so there’s that.
Lots of blue ice
Adam Svoboda (CZE) set the single tournament record for goalies’ minutes played in 1997 when he played 428:27. That number might finally be challenged. Sweden’s Carl Lindbom has played every minute for Sweden, which translates to 301:35 minutes played. Tomas Suchanek of Czechia has been equally busy, also charting exactly 301:35 minutes. And, Patriks Berzins of Latvia has clocked 303:48 so far.
Slap happy
The World Juniors is a sensational level of hockey, but it is clearly one step below the NHL, where the players are even faster, bigger, and more skilled. One thing that happens regularly at the junior level and never in the NHL—a player slapping his stick on the ice calling for a pass. There has been plenty of that this year, and there’s a term for it that is quintessentially Canadian—beaver tailing.