With the 2024 World Junior Championship kicking off in just a few short days, I wanted to take a look at one player to watch for each and every team competing in this year’s tournament. Sometimes, you’re watching your home country play and you’re surprised to hear a name coming up over and over on the opposing team, “who is that guy?” you ask yourself, well not anymore.
Today we’re going over the most talented and fun to watch player for each of the 10 nations competing for Gold in Gothenburg next week so you’re all caught up and have at least one name you’ll recognize on each team. Bonus points to you because it’ll be someone who is fun to watch. Let’s jump right in!
Canada: Macklin Celebrini
Maybe this one is a bit obvious, but that doesn’t mean it’s not correct. Celebrini is firmly the favorite to go first overall in the upcoming NHL Draft and has been one of the very best players in all of college hockey through the first half of the season. He’s got the potential to be an excellent two-way, top-six center with the potential to be a true star in the NHL someday.
Related: Guide to the 2024 World Junior Championship
Most draft eligible prospects don’t play large roles on the best teams in this tournament (unless they’re named Connor Bedard), we saw a great example of this last year with the eventual third overall pick of the 2023 Draft, Adam Fantilli. He had a similarly electric start to the year in the NCAA but was relegated to a bottom-six role for Canada. This year’s group isn’t quite as strong at forward and it appears that Celebrini has earned himself a top-six role after being the best player for Canada at their selection camp.
Celebrini is a multi-faceted offensive threat with a great shot, slick playmaking, and great hands. He’s also a powerful skater which allows him to blaze through the neutral zone with possession of the puck and he’s also a positive contributor on the defensive side of the puck. There’s not much Celebrini can’t do, and while he’s still just 17 years old until June, I expect him to be one of the most fun players to watch in the entire tournament.
USA: Will Smith
Will Smith was one of the most exciting players to watch from the 2023 Draft class, with the ability to pull highlight reel plays out of thin air on a very consistent basis. Smith’s skill with the puck is something that stands out the first time you see him play, navigating through defenders with ease. He is also a gifted playmaker with a ton of built in chemistry with his linemates Gabe Perreault and Ryan Leonard.
This trio has spent a ton of time playing together between the US National Team Development Program (NTDP), international tournaments, and now with Boston College where they have already spent more time together. Smith connects this line with his skating and his dynamic ability to carry the puck through traffic in ways that few others can.
Team USA has a ton of offensive talent this year (as they do most years), so this line may not get the biggest minutes, though it’s fair to expect them to find a ton of success if they get significant minutes against an opposing nation’s second or third lines. Smith is an incredibly fun player to watch and I think he’ll be one of the most exciting players to follow this year.
Sweden: Axel Sandin Pellikka
Axel Sandin Pellikka (ASP) competed in this tournament last year and his solid performance was the catalyst for him rising significantly in draft talks, eventually leading to him being selected 17th overall by the Detroit Red Wings. As a 17-year-old defender, ASP gradually earned the trust of his coaches and teammates throughout the tourney, eventually playing big minutes on the top power play unit and even in overtime.
Related: 10 Things to Look For at the 2024 WJC
He hasn’t looked back since then, with a great start to the season in Sweden’s top professional league this Fall. ASP leads all SHL defensemen in goals with nine, and has a remarkable 13 points in 25 games going into the World Juniors. While Sandin Pellikka is a skilled offensive player, that doesn’t mean he’s automatically a poor defensive player.
ASP is a talented and committed defensive player, which is why he has earned such big minutes this year as a full-time player in one of the world’s best hockey leagues at age 18. He projects to be Sweden’s number one defender, especially considering his track record with Team Sweden in international play, being named the top defender at last Summer’s U18 World Championship. Sandin Pellikka loves to rip one-timers from the left faceoff circle on the power play so watch out!
Finland: Konsta Helenius
Konsta Helenius is a fascinating player to track through the draft process, with the skill and flash to dominate his age group in small sample sizes and the combination of compete level and two-way smarts to make him an excellent, if slightly safe, player against grown men. He hasn’t played a single game against junior competition, instead spending all his time in the Finnish Liiga where he’s second in league scoring among U20 players.
Helenius is likely going to be playing a big role for Finland at this year’s tournament (as well as the following two tournaments), as their forward group is a bit weaker than usual. He’ll have help from Jani Nyman and Lenni Hameenaho who are also likely to be top-six forwards, but Helenius has the highest potential of the group.
His playmaking is outstanding and has really been impressive against grown men, while his high compete level and skating make him an absolute beast on the forecheck where he’s always running at 100% effort. Helenius may not have the flashy hands of a Will Smith or the blistering shot of a Cole Eiserman, but he does a ton of things really well and a good showing at this tournament should help cement him as at least a top-10 player in this year’s draft.
Czechia: Jiri Kulich
Jiri Kulich is halfway through tearing up the American Hockey League (AHL) for the second time, and is set to be the offensive figurehead for a Czechian team looking to improve on last year’s Silver medal. Kulich has been phenomenal ever since he was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres back in 2022, scoring 24 goals and 46 points as a rookie in the AHL last year, and he has continued that development this year where he already has 16 goals roughly a third of the way into his season.
Though he’s a bit of an under appreciated prospect by many hockey fans, Kulich is a goalscorer through and through, with a heater of a one-timer that he uses best on the power play where he can post up and has proven capable of beating AHL goalies quite regularly. His skating and high-end motor make him a general nuisance in the offensive zone because he doesn’t give up on the play.
He was phenomenal in this tournament last year, scoring seven goals and nine points in seven games, but I expect him to push into the double-digits this time, possibly as one of the tournament’s leading scorers when all is said and done. Don’t overlook Czechia this year, Kulich alone is capable of keeping them in games and even possibly stealing a win or two.
Slovakia: Samuel Honzek
Samuel Honzek had an impressive start to the season last year in the Western Hockey League (WHL), earning more and more draft attention up until he made Slovakia’s World Juniors roster. Unfortunately, he suffered an injury in the second game of the tourney and was forced to miss out on the rest of the competition as well as much of his regular season.
When he has played over the past 15 months or so, Honzek has impressed as a big winger who skates well, excels in puck battles, and has a sneakily good shot. He uses his large frame incredibly well, both in physical battles and to help protect the puck, and he can score goals from range with a wrist shot or in tight with good enough hands to keep defenders guessing.
Honzek is a committed defensive player as well which makes him incredibly valuable in difficult minutes where he can both defend the opposing team’s best players as well as push for offense.
Germany: Julian Lutz
Julian Lutz has a good track record with the German national team, competing as a member since his U16 season. Lutz is now competing in his second U20 World Junior Championship and will be relied on heavily by Team Germany to provide offense.
After a few years playing in the top pro league in Germany, Lutz made the jump to North America this year, now playing for the Green Bay Gamblers in the USHL. He has scored 23 points in his first 19 games there which is solid in the context of the adaptations necessary to play on the smaller ice surface and to live in an entirely new country.
Latvia: Eriks Mateiko
Eriks Mateiko is a massive winger who is playing in his second season with the Saint John’s Sea Dogs in the QMJHL. His rookie season there was promising but he has taken a massive step forward since then, scoring above a point-per-game pace through the first half of the season.
He’s got a heavy wrister and plays a power forward style despite the need to fill out his frame a bit more. Mateiko is very effective deep in the offensive zone, keeping plays alive and setting teammates up from below the goal line. A good performance here would likely put him on the radar for a ton of NHL teams, likely as a potential second round pick.
Switzerland: Daniil Ustinkov
Daniil Ustinkov is an under-talked about prospect in this year’s draft, partly because his point totals in the top two pro leagues in Switzerland don’t jump off the page, and partly because there are so many other great defenders to talk about this year. Ustinkov is a really consistent and sturdy two-way defender who doesn’t have a ton of skill with the puck or a particularly dangerous shot, but can produce enough offense to hang thanks to his compete level and some impressive playmaking instincts.
Related: 6 Bold Predictions for the 2024 WJC
I’ve been really impressed with Ustinkov whenever he competes internationally, especially at last year’s U18 World Championship where he was excellent for Switzerland, finishing the tournament in a tie for the ninth most points amongst all defenders despite playing just five of a possible seven games. Ustinkov was also solid at the most recent Hlinka Gretzky Cup so there’s a very real track record of recent success against his age group and I think he’ll keep that up.
Norway: Michael Brandsegg-Nygård
Michael Brandsegg-Nygard’s best attribute is his shot, which is quite heavy. He’s already scored his first professional goal and should get quite a few more this year, especially if he earns some time on the power play where he excels from the bumper spot as a one-timer option. Brandsegg-Nygård has bounced between the J20 level and the Allsvenskan a bit this year, but his 12 points in seven J20 games shows he’s clearly a step above his peers.
Norway is going to have a difficult time staying in the top division of the world junior championship this year, likely competing against Latvia or Germany in the relegation round, but Brandsegg-Nygård has the potential to be a catalyst for this team. Sometimes, all you need is a couple of timely goals that lead to a single group stage victory in order to avoid relegation and he has the potential to provide that for Norway.
