HF Habs: U18 World Men's Hockey Championship, April 25-May 5

[le_sean]

So much for @Goldenhands prediction of Helenius killing this competition. Big yawn of a tournament for him

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Finland starts 3rd on PP still.

 

[Andrei79]

So much for @Goldenhands prediction of Helenius killing this competition. Big yawn of a tournament for him

Is he showing skill/creativity ? Good player but very boring to watch.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

PP Sweden now.

Well, Sweden takes a penalty. 4 on 4 should open things up a bit.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Is he showing skill/creativity ? Good player but very boring to watch.

He is showing skill, and is a beautiful skater. Sweden is playing a 1-4, so it's nearly impossible to carry the puck into their zone. You have to dump it in. Helenius is the only player who can cross the blueline with possession. They're on him fast & doing a good job of isolating him from his teammates.

It's a seriously boring game.

 

[le_sean]

Is he showing skill/creativity ? Good player but very boring to watch.

Yes he’s showing skill but what good is skill if you don’t produce.

 

[Mrb1p]

Is he showing skill/creativity ? Good player but very boring to watch.

Not really. Most of the 2024 showcasing right now are pro type players. The U18s is basically pond hockey. It's a glorified Kubota game at this point. All Ive seen is Martone, Hagens and McKenna streaking down the ice to score on highlight reels over and over.

I guess some players can get lost in the sauce when they're playing that type of tournament. It is interesting to see guys that CAN play pro games be complete monsters in pond hockey though. Martone is exhibit A, but his physical tools are so far up the wazoo that I'm not sure it tells much on his actual quality as a player. Hellie is showing some good skating and flashing his shot and puck carrying though, can't say otherwise.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Goal line save by Rimpinen on a wrap-around.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

PP Finland. They pretty much have to score here.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Yes he’s showing skill but what good is skill if you don’t produce.

Same thing happened to Pastrnak. He had an excellent season in HockeyAllsvenskan, but did nothing at u18s. No goals & only handful of assists.

The following year he's ppg in AHL to start, gets called up to NHL and that's all she wrote.

Helenius is productive in Liiga.

He's playing at World Championship in a couple of weeks, so there's more opportunity to watch him.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

A scrum to finish the PP. Pikkarainen giving shots after the whistle.

No PP. Coincidental minors.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Empty net for Finland. Swedes win. 2-1.

 

[Schooner Guy]

Brutal job TWICE by the Fins holding the line in the O-zone on the right side with the extra attacker.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Really poor tournament by Finland. I would've liked to see more aggressiveness from Helenius in terms of attacking the middle of the ice, and taking Ds wide.

Ditto Hemming. Kiviharju didn't stand out in any way either. Those 3 needed to lead this team.

Overall, it's not a great draft year for Fins.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Brutal job TWICE by the Fins holding the line in the O-zone on the right side with the extra attacker.

Yeah, terrible empty net play. Sweden was all over them.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

2024 is really not a deep draft especially for forwards. If we do keep both our picks, I'd take 2 forwards & go D later.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

I don't expect the Canada - Latvia game to be competitive at all. I'll probably just watch the 1st period. McKenna and Martone are fun to watch.

 

[Mrb1p]

2024 is really not a deep draft especially for forwards. If we do keep both our picks, I'd take 2 forwards & go D later.

I'd say the depth is impressive in the first 30-40 picks but it falls off reallt hard after that

 

[MarkovsKnee]

I'd say the depth is impressive in the first 30-40 picks but it falls off reallt hard after that

Yeah, that's what I mean. By Colorado's pick just start taking D, or the energizer bunny, hitting type forwards in mid-rounds. I would trade some of our lower picks. We don't need three 7 round picks. One should do.

There should be 2 good forwards to take in 1st round, though.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Eeesh, Elick terrible turn over leads to a Latvia breakaway.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

George is in net for Canada and he's had to make 3 good stops already.

Highsticking penalty to Latvia. PP Canada.

 

[Playmaker09]

I'd say the depth is impressive in the first 30-40 picks but it falls off reallt hard after that

There's a huge dropoff in the early 20s IMO which is pretty typical of most draft years.

Really poor tournament by Finland. I would've liked to see more aggressiveness from Helenius in terms of attacking the middle of the ice, and taking Ds wide.

Ditto Hemming. Kiviharju didn't stand out in any way either. Those 3 needed to lead this team.

Overall, it's not a great draft year for Fins.

Hemming is the biggest disappointment. Just a perimeter shooter with limited IQ.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Good give and go between Masse & Iginla.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

OMG, absolute chaos in front of Latvia's net. Bodies all over. McKenna eventually gets it to Masse. Goal 1-0.

Reviewing for goaltending interference. It's good. 1-0.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

McKenna ties Bedard's 15 pts single season record for u18.