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Canadiens Prospect WJC Update: Joshua Roy Leads The Charge

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1 month ago

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Montreal Canadiens Prospect Joshua Roy

The 2023 World Junior Championship is in full swing, with the vast majority of Montreal Canadiens prospects having played three round-robin games.

It’s been a mixed bag of results for the six players participating in the tournament, although it’s worth pointing out that both Joshua Roy (Canada) and Adam Engstrom (Sweden) have impressed for their respective countries.

Joshua Roy, Canada, 3 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 PTS

Roy had a quiet night in Canada’s 5-2 loss to the Czech Republic in the opening game of the tournament but quickly found his rhythm in the following games.

The Canadiens prospect scored a goal and an assist in Canada’s 11-2 drubbing of Germany, including a great goal set up by 17-year-old phenom Connor Bedard, who set a Canadian record with seven points in the game.

Roy followed it up with a three-point effort in Thursday night’s 11-0 thrashing of Austria. His second goal of the tournament was yet again set up by Bedard, who only managed to hit the scoresheet on six occasions this time around.

The Sherbrooke Phoenix forward is currently tied for third overall in tournament scoring.

Adam Enstrom, Sweden, 3 GP, 1 G, 2 A, 3 PTS

Engstrom’s impressive season has no end in sight.

After securing a spot on Rogle’s top pairing as an 18-year-old and facing opponents with much more experience during his first season of professional hockey, the smooth-skating defenceman has generated a very healthy amount of offence for Sweden at the WJC.

Just like his role in the SHL, Engstrom is tasked with top pairing duties for his national team.

He’s definitely among the most underrated prospects in the Canadiens prospect pool, but at this rate, he won’t remain underrated for very much longer, seeing as his great season is starting to attract some well-deserved attention.

Oliver Kapanen, Finland, 3 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 PTS

Kapanen scored his first goal of the tournament in a 5-2 victory over Slovakia, which ended up being Finland’s game-winning goal.

Overall, the Finnish captain enjoying a decent tournament, and his scoreline is a little unflattering compared to the effort he puts forth on the ice.

The real test will come in the medal rounds, as Finland will attempt to improve upon their silver-medal result in 2022.

Filip Mesar, Slovakia, 2 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 PT

After a difficult start to the tournament, which led to a 5-2 loss to Finland, Mesar, who is acting as an alternate captain for Slovakia, has shown several flashes of brilliance.

Mesar scored the game-winning goal in Slovakia’s impressive 6-2 win over the United States, though he was probably unlucky to only hit the scoresheet once seeing as he took a total of five shots on net, a continuation of his uptick in shot rate he enjoyed during his last few games for the Kitchener Rangers.

It was also quite fun to see the beaming smiles among the sea of proud Slovaks following the big win. When it comes to underdog teams that are easy to cheer for, Slovakia definitely fits the bill.

Lane Hutson, USA, 3 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 PT

It hasn’t been a fantastic start to the World Junior Championship for Hutson, at least when it comes to his production.

But his lack of production does not fairly represent his overall play.

Hutson has shown the same kind of vision that has led him to quickly become one of the best defenders in the NCAA.

Vinzenz Rohrer, Austria, 2 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 PTS

Rohrer was unable to play in Austria’s opening game, an 11-0 loss to Sweden. Since then, he was held scoreless in losses to the Czech Republic (9-0) and Canada (11-0).

And while the results for Austria are far from surprising, Rohrer, who was named captain of his national team, has done a great job displaying leadership, which will not go unnoticed when it comes to his place in the Canadiens prospect pool.

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John Spearing

The Bedard line looks so much better with Roy on it… but than again the competition has been lower as well… interested to see how that line looks vs the Swedes… Too bad Roy doesn’t get #1 PP time with Bedard or he might be 2nd in scoring right now…
Engstrom has been solid with the Swedes, probably the 2nd best D on that talented roster, should be fun watching him and Roy go head to head tomorrow…
Kapanen has felt a bit up and down – his first game was underwhelming his 2nd game was refreshing his 3rd I missed and it doesn’t sound like he was a big factor…
Hutson has looked good but Luke Hughes is stealing all the important minutes as they both thrive in the same role… Hutson has still been solid cutting plays off defensively and quickly transitioning to O…
Mesar has had a good one and a bad one, but no one on the Slovaks looked good in game 1 and he looked like one of the best Slovaks when they upset the States…
tough to get a good feel from Rohrer with how bad Austria is, but he is the captain and the coaches speak highly of him – he was also impressing me with the 67s before the tournament.

Last edited 1 month ago by John Spearing
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Pierre B.

The +/- stat is not that meaningful, but it’s still interesting to see Roy tied for first with Bedard and Hinds at +8 and Engström, tied at forth with Stankoven and two other Swedes at +6. Both prospects are leaders in their respective team with respect to this stat.

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