Should NHL teams let the best prospects attend WJC

[gritdash60]

Ismo Lehkonen, father of Colorado player Artturi Lehkonen asked that what if NHL teams let all players in the WJC? Let's pick Celebrini for example, he is 18 and would probably be the best player in the tournament. The reasoning on the statement was that these players will need to be the leading players not only on the ice but in the locker room as well, and what is the better place to learn that than in WJC? The top top guys have played 2 or 3 years up all the time, just put them in the tournament and let them learn what it means to be a leader.

The reason he said this should be done is that the these players have been played 2 or 3 years up all their life, and now in the NHL, but never in a "leader role" which they would have to do in WJC

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[Coffee]

No

 

[tabness]

Yes, did you see the embarrassingly trash team Canada assembled? Needed Bedard to carry them, he's used to playing with scrubs in Chicago anyway so easy transition, and maybe it get get him some more confidence too. Still haven't gotten the name of the Celine Dion kid or whatever but I'm sure he's way better than the garbage players Hockey Canada bought.

I'm not even Canadian but them sucking this much in the tournament does not make it fun...

 

[Jumptheshark]

Once a player is playing in the NHL, that team needs to have that option to release him to any national team. We get this question every tournament. Twice when Canada loses.

 

[Habsrule]

I think it is a case by case basis but I think that teams should let their players play if eligible.

I’m sure that it is very stressful on a teenager to be playing in the NHL. Travel, food, first time playing with teammates who are not your age, etc. Let them go to the tournament and hang out with kids their own age again and have some fun.

I’m sure that they would come back with a big appreciation to their team. It is an honour to get to play for your country and they will remember it for the rest of their lives. They sure as hell will remember that more than some mid season three week span that they played in the NHL as an 18 or 19 year old.

 

[dirtydanglez]

no, nhl comes first.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

Dominating against weak competitions isn't whats going to make a player a better leader.

 

[SillyRabbit]

It varies on a case by case basis.

Some players could get a lot of benefit from being "the man" on a WJC team.

Others are so good that it would be a walk in the park for them and they're better off contributing at an NHL level.

 

[MXD]

Yes, did you see the embarrassingly trash team Canada assembled? Needed Bedard to carry them, he's used to playing with scrubs in Chicago anyway so easy transition, and maybe it get get him some more confidence too. Still haven't gotten the name of the Celine Dion kid or whatever but I'm sure he's way better than the garbage players Hockey Canada bought.

I'm not even Canadian but them sucking this much in the tournament does not make it fun...

Isn't that Demidov, who is not allowed to participate?

 

[x Tame Impala]

The Hawks let Kirby Dach play in the WJC and he ended up injuring his wrist and stalling his development.

I don’t care about a teenager tournament. These guys are pro’s now. There’s no reason for them to play in a lesser league or against lesser competition

 

[TheNumber4]

I love the WJCs even if Canada’s B team can’t take it home every year like they used to.

But i love my Oilers more. And if we got a prospect that can help the big club and work on his NHL development while not risking unnecessary injury, he’s staying in the big Leagues.

 

[Albatros]

The vets will never get that in the CBA.

 

[Sanderson]

Ismo Lehkonen, father of Colorado player Artturi Lehkonen asked that what if NHL teams let all players in the WJC? Let's pick Celebrini for example, he is 18 and would probably be the best player in the tournament. The reasoning on the statement was that these players will need to be the leading players not only on the ice but in the locker room as well, and what is the better place to learn that than in WJC? The top top guys have played 2 or 3 years up all the time, just put them in the tournament and let them learn what it means to be a leader.

The reason he said this should be done is that the these players have been played 2 or 3 years up all their life, and now in the NHL, but never in a "leader role" which they would have to do in WJC

That seems to come from a European perspective, where the occasional great young talent will be pulled up to the men's team rather early instead of spending more time in juniors. It doesn't really apply to North American talents like Celebrini, who had to play some form of junior hockey up until the draft. And if such a talent was so special that he jumped right into the NHL after the draft, he very likely was dominating (and thus a leader on) his junior team before that.

Not to mention that these kids have likely been among the dominant players of their age group for quite some time, meaning they will have been a leader on U16/U17/U18 international teams already. Two weeks of U20 tournament wouldn't be giving them a drastically new experience. Nor would they learn more than they could in the NHL, if they already are good enough to play there.

Which isn't to say that some of the prospects who play in the NHL at 18 or 19 wouldn't be better off spending the year in juniors. Just because they are "good enough" doesn't mean they learned all they could in juniors. There is some benefit to letting young players exploit their offensive potential to the fullest, instead of having them try too hard not to make mistakes too early.

 

[Shark Finn]

Meh. Does a player like Celebrini even want to go and risk his health while giving up pay for a couple of games? I don't think so. They've gone pro and rightfully so.

 

[Jack Spider]

Meh. Does a player like Celebrini even want to go and risk his health while giving up pay for a couple of games? I don't think so. They've gone pro and rightfully so.

he would play in a lower tier league than the nhl though. The wjc. The injury argument is not it.

 

[L4br3cqu3]

Celebrini is having a very good 1st season in the NHL right now, why would he go to the WJC ? Why would any kid having success in the NHL want to go there ? I love the WJC, but there's just no incentives at all, it's not the Olympics, and the 'injury argument' is certainly a valid one, if a pro got injured like Schaefer did, yeah, I'm sure it'd help.

Nope, I'm canadian and I feel bad for the kids who played, but certainly not for the rotten mess making bad calls above them.

 

[Yozhik v tumane]

I voted yes because people calling the WJCs “best on best” finally would start making sense. Would be fun too, of course.

But at the same time, I feel hockey fans are going overboard about what is in fact a youth tournament, and I think we should realize that kids these ages are at very different points in development and perhaps the guys who are playing in the NHL right now doesn’t need the experience, whereas it’s typically a boost for the guys actually making WJC rosters. I don’t think there’s anything stopping NHL teams from allowing their players to go? Shane Wright had got his feet wet in the NHL prior to his last tournament, for example? So yeah, agreed on the statement on determining this on a case by case basis.

Celebrini and Bedard on the one hand are a couple of the sole bright spots on bleak teams. Maybe they would benefit from a break in the NHL schedule with an opportunity to actually win something this year, but if teams are betting on key players for crucial points in a playoffs race down the line, that probably should take precedence over the WJCs.

 

[NyQuil]

The WJC is a developmental tournament.

If they are in the NHL, they don’t need it anymore for development.

 

[Shark Finn]

he would play in a lower tier league than the nhl though. The wjc. The injury argument is not it.

And how is this an argument? It doesn't make sense.

 

[GreeningOil]

I love the WJCs even if Canada’s B team can’t take it home every year like they used to.

But i love my Oilers more. And if we got a prospect that can help the big club and work on his NHL development while not risking unnecessary injury, he’s staying in the big Leagues.

I agree. I definitely like the idea of players leaving only for best on best tournaments.

 

[BKarchitect]

Lol can you imagine Mike Grier being like “yeah I’m ok with Celebrini missing a week+ of our actual games to go play a bunch of teenagers in the middle of the NHL season.”

No chance.

If you are so good at hockey that you are an important NHL regular at 18 or 19, you are already getting training to be a leader at the level you need to be a leader at. Two weeks of dropping way down to a junior tournament play isn’t making or breaking your intangibles to be a leader in the face of adversity or high leverage situations.

 

[NyQuil]

Lol can you imagine Mike Grier being like “yeah I’m ok with Celebrini missing a week+ of our actual games to go play a bunch of teenagers in the middle of the NHL season.”

No chance.

If you are so good at hockey that you are an important NHL regular at 18 or 19, you are already getting training to be a leader at the level you need to be a leader at. Two weeks of dropping way down to a junior tournament play isn’t making or breaking your intangibles to be a leader in the face of adversity or high leverage situations.

It also takes a spot and likely an important role away from a player who could really use the opportunity.

It was funny that Patrice Bergeron won a World Championship gold before a World Junior Championship gold but realistically he didn’t have to be there and it was almost embarrassing that he was.

 

[Voight]

Yes, did you see the embarrassingly trash team Canada assembled? Needed Bedard to carry them, he's used to playing with scrubs in Chicago anyway so easy transition, and maybe it get get him some more confidence too. Still haven't gotten the name of the Celine Dion kid or whatever but I'm sure he's way better than the garbage players Hockey Canada bought.

I'm not even Canadian but them sucking this much in the tournament does not make it fun...

No, they needed to not leave Parekh, Sennecke, Misa, Cristal and Yakemchuk at home.

 

[ClydeLee]

The Hawks let Kirby Dach play in the WJC and he ended up injuring his wrist and stalling his development.

I don’t care about a teenager tournament. These guys are pro’s now. There’s no reason for them to play in a lesser league or against lesser competition

Dach was a beautiful concoction of bad choices/development. Rushed his 1st year to the NHL, Dach told in an interview last year Bowman told him they were going to send him to the WJC that year, then 2 days later told him upper management said no. So John McDonough said no. Then the next season after Dach looked great and arriving in the playoff bubble, they send him. Then rushed him back, then rested him like the last few weeks because of his wrist hurting. All awful decisions compounding 1 after 1.

To me it's not a sign to say no to wjcs. To players of Dachs ability their draft year, I think they should be ok to send them. Like Sj didn't send Will Smith but I could of seen that as good to do.

This thread is a mix of who do you mean? Should Celebrini and Bedard have gone? No, they already were great and lead their team in points their draft years, why go back?

 

[Guttersniped]

Ismo Lehkonen, father of Colorado player Artturi Lehkonen asked that what if NHL teams let all players in the WJC? Let's pick Celebrini for example, he is 18 and would probably be the best player in the tournament. The reasoning on the statement was that these players will need to be the leading players not only on the ice but in the locker room as well, and what is the better place to learn that than in WJC? The top top guys have played 2 or 3 years up all the time, just put them in the tournament and let them learn what it means to be a leader.

The reason he said this should be done is that the these players have been played 2 or 3 years up all their life, and now in the NHL, but never in a "leader role" which they would have to do in WJC

How many players are eligible this year?

Celebrini, Bedard, Benson and Smith are it, right?

I don’t see a problem with any of these players not going back to the WCJ. They’re playing major roles in the NHL and I assume that’s what they want.

The first two arguably have “leadership” roles already by being their teams’ top offensive players. I assume they’re learning and developing just fine in the NHL, which is what they need.