WJC: Medal Predictions

[Bee Sheriff]

I don't think you'll find that many people agree with you there.

McDavid > Eichel, worst case =

Reinhart > Matthews

I think Matthews will be the better NHL player 5-10 years from now. But right now, Reinhart has 2 years on Matthews, has NHL and WJC experience...you'd be hard-pressed to argue that.

Canada has the best one-two punch in the tournament, IMO. USA is a close second.

Maybe not many Canadians who agree with me. NCAA is a significantly tougher league than the OHL, it'll be a much easier transition for Eichel as opposed to McDavid transitioning off the couch. Matthews will be have a better performance than Reinhart when he's on bottom 6 lines taking advantage of the lower skilled players.

 

[bigdog16]

Finally 97% of McDavid lovers on here can witness Eichel play live! You will soon find out that battle for #1 overall is much closer than you expected! I can't wait to hear the "McDavid was coming straight off an injury" excuse though...

 

[KCC]

Finally 97% of McDavid lovers on here can witness Eichel play live! You will soon find out that battle for #1 overall is much closer than you expected! I can't wait to hear the "McDavid was coming straight off an injury" excuse though...

Eichel is very good. There's a reason why he's projected to go #2 overall. As for McDavid, you know darn well that his injury may affect him early on. It'll take time to get his timing and get his legs back.

 

[canuck2010]

Maybe not many Canadians who agree with me. NCAA is a significantly tougher league than the OHL, it'll be a much easier transition for Eichel as opposed to McDavid transitioning off the couch. Matthews will be have a better performance than Reinhart when he's on bottom 6 lines taking advantage of the lower skilled players.

Not exactly sure what you mean a tougher league. The overall calibre of the NCAA is not as high as the O but the players are more physically mature and older for the most part.

 

[McDrai]

As a Canadian I am predicting:
Gold USA
Silver Czech Republic
Bronze Sweden

I kind of laugh at Canada being the favourites in this tournament as they have choked for a while now

 

[Statsy]

As a Canadian I am predicting:
Gold USA
Silver Czech Republic
Bronze Sweden

I kind of laugh at Canada being the favourites in this tournament as they have choked for a while now

And yet you have the Czech Republic as a silver medalist despite their abysmal performance the last several years. It's a new year and a new team for the Czechs, but why wouldn't you extend the same consideration to Canada? The tournament results the last couple of years have little to no bearing on this year's team.

 

[McDrai]

And yet you have the Czech Republic as a silver medalist despite their abysmal performance the last several years. It's a new year and a new team for the Czechs, but why wouldn't you extend the same consideration to Canada? The tournament results the last couple of years have little to no bearing on this year's team.

Canada has been seen as the favorites to win the tournament basically every year and have disappointed. The Czechs have disappointed as well but they are usually not in the top 2-3 favorites to win. It's usually Canada, Russia, and Sweden/US. Canada's downfall will be their weak goaltending and I would be surprised if they medal this year

 

[Statsy]

Canada has been seen as the favorites to win the tournament basically every year and have disappointed. The Czechs have disappointed as well but they are usually not in the top 2-3 favorites to win. It's usually Canada, Russia, and Sweden/US. Canada's downfall will be their weak goaltending and I would be surprised if they medal this year

They're still not. But as for Canada, they have always been favorites and they should always be considered among the favorites due to the depth they can display on a yearly basis. Yes, the goaltending is a bit of a question mark, but not nearly as "doom and gloom" as everyone thinks. Even the Fucale haters have to agree that Comrie is a solid option.

 

[Jakk123]

Canada has been seen as the favorites to win the tournament basically every year and have disappointed. The Czechs have disappointed as well but they are usually not in the top 2-3 favorites to win. It's usually Canada, Russia, and Sweden/US. Canada's downfall will be their weak goaltending and I would be surprised if they medal this year

What? Canada and US are pretty amazing this year. I am not saying that they will medal for sure, but they certainly are the biggest candidates.

 

[Rob]

I was really disappointed in the Hockey News' World Junior Championship issue.
Of course McDavid vs Eichel was the big focal point. Which is understandable.
However, they placed Russia and Sweden outside of the medals without explaining why. They just talked about Barbashev and Nylander for their respective teams. No depth at all.

Fortunately I can come to HF to find out more about the teams competing.

 

[OttawaRoughRiderFan*]

I was really disappointed in the Hockey News' World Junior Championship issue.

That is a lesson I learned long ago, my friend. My past experience...

See the issue on the newsstand. See the cover - read there is BIG coverage inside. Buy the issue. Get the issue home. Finish it in 10 minutes and think, "I just paid a buck a minute to learn nothing I didn't already know." Throw the issue in the recycle bin.

Next time, save your money.

 

[Fantomas]

I leafed through the THN WJC issue. It's pretty laughable.

I don't know if THN has ever put out good WJC issues, because they started fairly recently. That said, the general quality of the magazine has been going down.

Most noticeable drop in quality has been with the draft issue. I still have many of the old ones from the 90s and early 00s, which were hardly brilliant works of scouting but nevertheless enjoyable reads.

 

[Dynamo81]

1. Canada
2. USA
3. Russia

 

[Bee Sheriff]

Not exactly sure what you mean a tougher league. The overall calibre of the NCAA is not as high as the O but the players are more physically mature and older for the most part.

It's tougher in the same way that the AHL is tougher, just more men than boys. Whereas the OHL is almost only boys.

 

[Rob]

That is a lesson I learned long ago, my friend. My past experience...

See the issue on the newsstand. See the cover - read there is BIG coverage inside. Buy the issue. Get the issue home. Finish it in 10 minutes and think, "I just paid a buck a minute to learn nothing I didn't already know." Throw the issue in the recycle bin.

Next time, save your money.

I have a subscription. Or should I say I had a subscription. Not sure I am going to renew. I only look forward to two issues now. The yearbook and the draft preview.

 

[helax]

Canada's downfall will be their weak goaltending and I would be surprised if they medal this year

And their lack of game plan! Dumping puck and skate fast dose not work at WJC level

 

[Rebuilt]

The US is going to crush Canada , McDavid or no McDavid. They just arent that good anymore.

 

[Statsy]

I leafed through the THN WJC issue. It's pretty laughable.

I don't know if THN has ever put out good WJC issues, because they started fairly recently. That said, the general quality of the magazine has been going down.

Most noticeable drop in quality has been with the draft issue. I still have many of the old ones from the 90s and early 00s, which were hardly brilliant works of scouting but nevertheless enjoyable reads.

Back in the day they used to be pretty awesome, actually! THN was at it's best before they switched to magazine format from a paper. But times change and it has been in a slow decline for a long while. It's too bad.

 

[Statsy]

And their lack of game plan! Dumping puck and skate fast dose not work at WJC level

I think we know a little something about how to win at the WJC. Perhaps you're new to this event and just showed up in the last couple of years, but here's a little refresher for ya; The scoreboard says Canada 15, Sweden 2.

 

[SChan*]

I think we know a little something about how to win at the WJC. Perhaps you're new to this event and just showed up in the last couple of years, but here's a little refresher for ya; The scoreboard says Canada 15, Sweden 2.

Says medal prediction in op, not gold peediction.

 

[Statsy]

Says medal prediction in op, not gold peediction.

Yeah, I'm okay with our overall medal count too.

 

[bottomofthefoodchain]

USA
Sweden
Russia
Finland

Canada irrelevant once again

 

[bottomofthefoodchain]

I think we know a little something about how to win at the WJC. Perhaps you're new to this event and just showed up in the last couple of years, but here's a little refresher for ya; The scoreboard says Canada 15, Sweden 2.

Hey look, its Kevin Lowe!

 

[Statsy]

Boy, you win a medal 14 years in a row, and then finish 4th twice in a row and it's like they forget all about you.

 

[Lapa]

USA
Sweden
Finland
Canada