I didn't watch most of the tournament, but the players I liked on each semis team....
Canada: Kirby Dach, Dylan Cozens, Bowen Byram, Matthew Robertson, Alexis Lafreniere (2020 Draft)
I thought Lafreniere was their best player. Just bullying opponents with his speed and physicality. I think he's the closest player to Crosby, ATM. Dach was reliable in every facet. Defensively sound and always around the net. Physical, too. Can't wait to watch more from him!! Cozens is a workhorse and has a ton of speed. Think he's slightly frail, still, but that'll change as he matures. Byram was a force and is incredibly smart. He faked out so many PKer's when on the PP. He's also got an edge, along with good edge work. Robertson showed great composure under pressure and has a beautiful shot from the point. Really liked what I saw from him.
Sweden: Alexander Holtz (2020 Draft), Lucas Raymond (2020 Draft), Hugo Alnefelt, Philip Broberg
Their best players were Raymond and Holtz and that's incredible seeing that they're not eligible until the 2020 Draft. Both are explosive skaters that get around guys and score goals. I would say Holtz is more of a sniper and less physical than Raymond, but Raymond out muscles guys and can still snipe. I think they could both play in the SHL this season!! Alnefelt looked really solid and sound, positionally. At times he lost sight of the puck and was a little slow going post to post, but all-in-all he was pretty good. Broberg can skate like the wind for a big kid and can maneuver himself in ways that Rasmus Dahlin could. Offensively, he's a threat and defensively, he battles hard. There were at times, though, when he was pressured going up the ice and coughed the puck up, resulting in a breakaway the other way. With this said, however, he back checks hard and broke away the attempt. Really want to see how he does with AIK this year. His skating, alone, is 1st round talent.
Russia: Vasili Podkolzin, Ilya Nikolayev, Yaroslav Likhachev, Yaroslav Askarov (2020 Draft)
Podkolzin, easily, was Russia's best player!! Was an absolute bull with the puck. Closest thing to Malkin I've seen from a prospect in every zone. The only knock I had on him in this tournament is that when he was skating through players, his head was down looking at the puck every time. If he did that against Radko Gudas, his head would be off his body. Gotta keep your head up, otherwise, he should get some KHL action this year. Nikolayev looked like a poor man's version of Podkolzin. Skated through guys like nothing and possesses a pretty good wrister. Big boy and can hit the body. Likhachev can dangle!! Like crazy dangle!! Reminded me of a tiny Maxim Afinogenov. A playmaker that can be speedy and show strides of defensive capability. I'm curious to see how he does in the QMJHL. Askarov was solid. I didn't think Askarov was that good as
@Pavel Buchnevich mentions, but it's just one tourney. You can see that he's being coached right, though. Tracked the puck well and swallowed up rebounds. Played very well laterally and post-to-post. Will definitely keep tabs on him going forward.
USA: John Farinacci, Robert Mastrosimone, Nicholas Robertson
I'll be honest, I thought the US were crap in this tournament and it didn't help the matter when they got robbed of the finals. But there were a few bright spots. Farinacci was all over the ice creating plays and shooting the puck. He's physical and can play great defensive hockey. TBH, I thought he was a defenseman, at times, because the defense was that bad. Mastrosimone can snipe and dangle, but his defense was lackluster. Hoping he's not like that fully, but he is very good offensively. Robertson, like Mastrosimone, is a sniper, but he's a little more sound for the physical game. Intrigued to see more from him.
I think that Raymond was the best player in the semis. Kid is a workhorse and looked like the Swedish MacKinnon. Crazy draft year for 2020!!