We talk a lot about the need for more best-on-best international hockey at the NHL level. But what if the world juniors were a best-on-best? What would the rosters of Canada, USA, and Sweden look like with access to their full pool of under-20 talent — if every NHL and AHL team lent all of their eligible players, and everyone was healthy? And what would a hypothetical Russian team look like for 2024?
The Athletic’s prospects writers, Corey Pronman and Scott Wheeler, put their heads together to build out rosters for a best-on-best tournament.
Canada is the team that would benefit the most from a best-on-best event, with six additional players available to them.
The impact would be most pronounced at forward, where you’d be swapping in Connor Bedard, Adam Fantilli, Shane Wright, Zach Benson, and Matt Poitras for four of Carson Rehkopf, Easton Cowan, Owen Allard, Matthew Wood, Nate Danielson and Brayden Yager. We elected to keep Danielson and Yager as the 12th and 13th forwards from that group because of their pedigree, their two-way game, and their ability to play both center and the wing (Hockey Canada seems to like Danielson next to Beck, too). Suddenly, this is a team with three high-end skill lines and an excellent fourth line.
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On defense, you’d also be swapping in a No. 1 D on the left side in Kevin Korchinski, and likely swapping out one of Jake Furlong or Noah Warren. We cut Furlong because of his shared handedness with Korchinski and the stronger depth on the right side (though Furlong has outplayed Warren in camp and the QMJHL this season, it makes sense to keep an extra righty in case Bonk, the No. 6 here, struggles as an 18-year-old). That top four on the backend would stack up with any group in the tournament, Sweden’s stellar blue line included.
Canada’s goaltending would still be a concern, but this group would have so much offensive talent that it would likely become a moot point. — Scott Wheeler
The sole change from this group to the one USA is actually bringing is Logan Cooley, who has been a quality NHL player already as a teenager. He would change the lineup by moving Gauthier to his familiar spot on Cooley’s wing and pushing McGroarty to the third line, and thus Isaac Howard to an extra. This had the added benefit of not having a third line of tiny forwards. The boost to Team USA is not close to what Canada gets in a true best-on-best but this would still be a fairly dynamic forward group, although the blue line is not ideal.
In this scenario, either Oliver Moore or Carey Terrance gets cut and the other is the injury filler. — Corey Pronman
There are two major additions for the Swedes in a best-on-best format. Leo Carlsson is the big one. He’d change everything for this team and take a group that is excellent on defense and make them excellent at forward, too. He’d be one of the top forwards in the tournament and would give Sweden a second first line, if you will (we know what Liam Ohgren, Noah Ostlund and Jonathan Lekkerimaki can do together internationally).
On defense, if fully healthy, the Swedes would also have returnee Calle Odelius, who has to miss this year’s tournament due to a broken foot/ankle, in their top-six, sliding Anton Johansson to the extra spot and resulting in the cut of returnee Jakob Noren.
This group would be a legitimate gold medal challenger and one of the strongest groups Sweden has sent in recent memory. — Scott Wheeler
Team Russia would be very talented, especially up front, with one massive question mark down the middle. That question mark is so large given how extremely deep their wing depth is that they may be forced to try some of their wings at center. Matvei Michkov played center in the preseason in the KHL and may be forced into that role on a Team Russia.
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This would be one of the strongest blue lines I’ve seen from a Russian age group ever. Simashev and Silayev are legit premium talents and would be difference makers at the U20 level. Duda and Gulyayev can move pucks very well and Barabosha can be a hard to play against type. Their goaltenders lack size, but at the junior level they are excellent and Ivanov has had a lot of success already at the KHL level.
This team is strong enough that we cut Flames prospect Aydar Suniev, Blues prospect Nikita Susuyev, and Hurricanes prospects Gleb Trikozov, Alexander Pelevin, Alexander Perevalov, and Timur Mukhanov — among others. — Corey Pronman
(Photos of Leo Carlsson, Connor Bedard and Logan Cooley: Jamie Sabau, Perry Nelson, Charles LeClaire / USA Today)