The Christmas holidays are usually an exciting time in most lives, but even more so if you’re a hockey fan — as the World Junior Championship always fall on the week following Christmas Day. Fans are blessed with a week and a half of quality, fast-paced hockey, and a look at what the top prospects in the game can do on the world stage.
The Carolina Hurricanes have always been relatively well-presented at these tournaments over the past several years, even with their very large Russian prospect pool barred from competing. This year’s edition will be no different, with the team set to have at least three players participating, and the potential of a couple others being late additions. Let’s take a look at the guys who will be involved in one of hockey’s most exciting tournaments in just a couple weeks time.
Bradly Nadeau’s Importance for Canada
One of the most exciting prospects in the Hurricanes organization, Bradly Nadeau, should be set to be a key piece for the Canadian squad. He was recently named to their 32-man selection roster, and, considering his prowess as a goal scorer, looks to be a roster lock. He was left off the team’s roster last winter despite a strong season at the University of Maine — which became an eyebrow-raising decision considering the Hurricanes felt he was ready to make his NHL debut just months afterward.
For Nadeau, the fact that he already has pro experience and success only further helps his case with the team. He has five goals and 12 points in 20 games with the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League (AHL), and thus will join Canada as one of their most productive veteran players. When I watch him, I see a bit of Seth Jarvis in him. He has a high motor, a wicked release and great in-tight skill. When he shoots the puck it just explodes off of his blade. In a tournament where many of the players will be younger and less experienced than him, it would not surprise me at all to see him among the top goal scorers when it’s all said and done.
Felix Unger-Sorum & Oskar Vuollet Will Represent Sweden
A returnee from their 2024 World Juniors squad, Felix Unger-Sorum will surely be amongst the forces that drive Sweden at this tournament. As an 18-year-old last winter, he scored six points in seven games and largely looked fantastic despite being one of the youngest guys on the roster. His pro experience with the Leksands program in the Swedish league combined with his move abroad to the Chicago Wolves has accelerated his development, and he will be relied on to produce offense for a Swedish side that, on paper, looks to lack some firepower up front.
Related: 3 Hurricanes Named to 4 Nations Face-Off Rosters
Also set to represent Sweden is the Canes’ 2024 fifth-round pick, winger Oskar Vuollet, who I profiled earlier in the season in one of my Future Canes articles. He’s been a constant presence in Skelleftea AIK’s lineup all season — an impressive feat for an 18-year-old kid. While he’s unfortunately on an 18-game goalless drought as of this writing, he did manage to score a hat-trick earlier in the season, becoming just the 11th player to do so in the Swedish league at age 18 or younger. Clearly, he’s earned the trust of his coaching staff, as he’s been in the lineup for all 25 games and has seven points in a bottom-six role.
Hattrick av 18-årige Oskar Vuollet ! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/j0Bojj6YUM
— TV4 Hockey (@TV4_Hockey) October 1, 2024
This year’s Swedish team looks to be built from the back out, with their defense corps being the clear strength of their roster. They don’t have a ton of naturally gifted offensive stars, which means that Unger-Sorum and Vuollet should be relied on rather heavily considering they both excel on the attacking side of the game. Whether or not the country will have enough firepower to compete for a medal remains to be seen, but these two Hurricanes prospects look to be in a favourable position to prove themselves on the international stage.
Surprise Omissions
Dominik Badinka
The first player selected in the 2024 NHL Draft by the Hurricanes (34th overall), Dominik Badinka, was left off of Czechia’s initial roster, which is a rather large surprise. He’s played a combined 55 games at the pro level over the past two seasons for Malmo of the Swedish league, and has great size at 6-foot-3 and 185 pounds. He’s a really smooth skater and avid defender that moves the puck well and plays with a calm demeanor. I reached out to an avid Czech supporter overseas to try and gather some information on why a player of Badinka’s caliber would be overlooked for their roster, and I was told that local reports have said that their coaching staff did not have a strong impression of him when he was called up for three international games earlier in the year. Regardless, I think the country is doing themselves a disservice by not recalling him, as his talent level dictates that he should be one of their key defenders.
Noel Fransén
As I mentioned earlier, Sweden’s defense core seems to be the surplus of their roster, so naturally, Noel Fransén was facing stiff competition to secure a spot. Unfortunately, he was not called up. It’s mildly surprising though, when you consider his previous performances within the Swedish junior system — he has seven points in 13 games split between the U18 and U19 level, and had played in five of the U19 team’s nine games in 2024. He’s also having a strong year for Vasteras in Allsvenskan, with 14 points in 25 games — good for second place on their roster, as a defenseman. He skates very well and has great attacking instincts, vision, and puck-moving ability. It’s a shame that he wasn’t rewarded with a recall, but understandable considering the depth of the Swedish defense group.
Looking Ahead to the Tournament
The official puck drop of the World Juniors will be at 12 p.m. EST in Ottawa, Ontario on Dec. 26, with a match between Sweden and Slovakia to commence the tournament. The group stage, in which each team plays four games, runs through Dec. 31. That will be followed by the knockout stage, in which eight of the 10 countries will compete, with the remaining two facing relegation. There are gold, silver and bronze medals on the line — and we hope to see some Hurricanes prospects come home with some hardware around their necks!
