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Going into the tournament this year, a lot of people will be expecting Finland to make a deep run. They are in the easier of the two groups in the round-robin stage and their only stiff competition should be Canada. Although last year they got superb goaltending, they have a lot of talent this year that should make them a dangerous team on a nightly basis.
Yes, the goalies on this team have little experience playing on this big of a stage but the team in front of them should be able to hold the ship down. Blomqvist is immensely talented and Piiroinen has shown glimpses of great play when he is called upon like last year when he managed to get into one game and posted a 1.00 GAA and a .955 SV% so if they do falter, I don’t imagine it will be for long.
Finland should place first or second in Group A this year and will most likely get an easier matchup than last year in the quarterfinals. A lot of eyes will be watching them this year and it will be exciting to see how they perform as a whole.
Two other names to keep an eye on is Samuel Helenius and Samu Tuomaala. Helenius is a behemoth, standing at 6-foot-6 and is great at using his size to his advantage. He is perfectly suited to battle for pucks in the corners and stand in front of the net to screen the opposition. Tuomaala is a very skilled player who has excellent vision. He is able to thread a pass to his teammates with ease and is a marvel to watch with the puck on his stick. He is only going to get better as time progresses.
Another storyline that will be interesting to watch for is how much of an impact the younger players, more specifically the 2021 NHL Draft eligibles, can make for this team. One of the top players eligible for the draft is Aatu Raty. Although his stock has taken a hit since the start of the season, he will still be relied upon to play a big role for the Finns and he could slot in as the second-line center.
The offense this year is really going to be where team Finland shines. With top eligible players in this upcoming draft and high-end NHL prospects ready to go, this team is going to very deep and dangerous. One of the top players for them is going to be 2020 first-round pick Anton Lundell who has gotten off to a blazing start with HIFK in the Liiga where he has scored 11 goals and eight assists for 19 points in 15 games. Pair him with two talented players like Patrik Puistola (CAR) and Kasper Simontaival (LAK) and that is a deadly top line.
Viro and Loponen, a possible third pairing, are two players who may not see a boatload of ice time but will see very relied upon to make an impact. Viro, a 2020 third-round pick of the Red Wings, has three assists in 14 games for TPS of the Liiga. He skates well and really turns the puck over, averaging only one giveaway a game. Loponen, a seventh-round pick of the Leafs in 2019, has gotten off to a great start for Karpat U20 as he has 15 points in 20 games from the backend. He has a hard, accurate shot and certainly knows how to use it.
Another player that could see big minutes for Finland is Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Topi Niemala. He didn’t make the team last year but will get a great opportunity to see a lot of playing time this time around. A great puck-moving defenseman who sees the ice really well, he has collected three assists in eight games for Karpat of the Liiga and four points in six games for Karpat U20 in the U20 SM-sarja.
The other defensemen that could round out the roster will be Mikko Kokkonen (TOR), Antti Tuomisto (DET), Eemil Viro (DET) and Kalle Loponen (TOR). Kokkonen, a third-round pick by the Maple Leafs in 2019, has always been a great skater. He moves the puck really well and is able to skate himself out of danger when need be. Some people expect him to see a lot of power-play time this year and he has proven that he is able to be trusted with that responsibility this season.
Tuomisto, a second-round pick of the Red Wings in 2019, is another player who could be relied upon to play big minutes and see some power-play time. While he has not suited up in a game during the 2020–21 season with the University of Denver, he had a great 2018–19 season where he collected 49 points in 48 games with Assat U20 of the Jr. A SM-liiga.
Finland will be losing some big names such as Lassi Thomson and Anttoni Honka but will be more than capable to fill their roles with returning players and new faces ready for their shot. One returning player who will make a big impact is Winnipeg Jets prospect Ville Heinola. A great puck mover and offensive player, Heinola has been on loan to Lukko of the Liiga where he put one goal and 12 assists for 13 points in 16 points.
While Blomqvist may be younger than some of the other options in net for Finland, it is his athletic ability that has some people giving him the nod to start for the Finns in net this year. He is rarely caught out of position and is outstanding at tracking pucks through traffic. He moves well in his net and can make acrobatic saves look easy when needed.
The backup role will most likely go to former Windsor Spitfires goaltender Kari Piiroinen. The 19-year old has been playing for TUTO Hockey in the Mestis on loan from Tappara of the Liiga. In 13 games this season, he has put together a 6–2–5 record to go with a 2.28 GAA and a .924 SV%. Piiroinen moves really well in his net as well. He is very good at not letting out rebounds and while he may not be the biggest goalie at 6-foot-1, he is more than capable of making up for it with his athletic ability. If Blomqvist falters even one bit, I would not be surprised to see Piiroinen given the reins.
The cruel truth is that Slovakia simply does not have the talent pool of some of their opponents in their group. Covid-19 has presented a unique situation where Canada, Finland and Germany are going to be able to field obscenely potent rosters. On the surface it appears as though it’s going to be a tall order for Slovakia to avoid playing in the relegation round, let alone even sincerely think about competing for a medal. However, if they field some of the younger dynamic talent available to them, they could surprise some people. Slovakia has some defenders that are capable puck movers and they have some forwards that are capable offensive producers.
The big questions is going to be, “can they put it all together?” If they are able to battle through this tournament and avoid relegation, they could come out the other side of this with some valuable experience for their younger players going forward. If their top players show up and perform up to their potential, they could steal a few games. Chromiak, Cajkovic, Hlavaj and Knazko are going to have to lead the way and be the best players on the ice game in and game out. If they can do that and outplay supposedly “better” competition, truly anything is possible.
There’s some real talent in this player pool if Slovakia is willing to field them. Beyond the three players already drafted by NHL teams (Knazko, Chromiak, Cajkovic) some of the best talent available to Slovakia is going to come in the forms of younger players like Nemec, Myklukha and Slafkovsky. It’s really a question of whether or not these kids show well in selection camp and if the Slovak coaching staff is willing to take a chance on them for the tournament.
Center is not a position of strength for the Slovak team this year. Myklukha’s time in the QMJHL could prove invaluable to this team, having already played against some of the tougher competitors that Slovakia is likely to face. Of the players in selection camp, Myklukha’s quality of competition faced is among the highest and is on par with Chromiak and Cajkovic. If he were to make the team, I expect to see him centering one (or maybe both) of those potent wingers.
Baco put up 23 points in 31 games with a Czech U20 team last season and hit the ground running this season to the tune of 6 points in 9 games. His 6-foot-3 size should also help him assert himself in camp. He’s got a powerful shot and can work well in the cycle. He has also shown some good skill in tight around the grinding for loose pucks and trying to jam in rebounds and tip-ins. In spite of being 2021 eligible, both Baco and Myklukha have shown talent that should see them compete for a roster spot.
There’s three players playing junior hockey outside of Slovakia that seem like good candidates to make the final cut. Simon Jellus played 7 games for Slovakia in the U18 World Juniors in 2018–19. Last season he had respectable production in the Swedish U20 league to the tune of 7 goals and 22 assists in 43 games. This season he has 6 goals in 18 games. He has found a bit of scoring touch at a respectable junior hockey level.
Juraj Slafkovsky has done something similar with TPS U20 team in Finland. Slafkovsky is another 2022 draft eligible player with immense size. The 16 year old checks in at 6-foot-4 and 218 pounds. He has also played some time at the center position for Slovakia internationally. In 2019–20 Slafkovsky played with the U16, U17 and U18 team in international competitions and totaled 9 points through 10 games. If he had had a good camp, it would be hard to ignore Slafkovsky’s history of solid center-play and point production in spite of his young age.
Lastly, Michael Drabek has 9 points in 6 games with his Czech U20 club. These players are playing against tougher competition than they would likely have faced had they stayed in Slovakia to play their junior hockey and it could give them a competitive edge towards winning a roster slot.
From inside Slovakia, Lukas Skvarek looks like a contender. The 6-foot-3 center/wing had 15 points in 5 games at the junior level for HK Nitra’s U20 team before he was bumped up to the big club where in 10 games he scored 2 goals. This is a player who thoroughly dominated junior hockey in Slovakia at the age of 18. Center, Maros Jedlicka accomplished a similar feat with HKM Zloven. He had 5 points through 2 junior games before playing 8 with the big club.
Mammoth-sized Center, Dominik Sojka did not start the season in juniors at all. The 6-foot-6, 220 pound 19-year-old started this season with HC Banska Bystrica, where he had finished up last season. Sojka is not a point scoring dynamo by any stretch of the imagination, with only 2 points in 40 games of Tipos Extraliga experience. He does, however, have 40 games of Tipo Extraliga experience spread across 3 seasons. Sojka has a big man’s body and has experience playing a man’s game. It’s really hard to quantify what kind of value that might have. These players all bring varying degrees of professional experience but they have each had some degree of success in that realm.
Robert Baco and Oleksii Myklukha are both 2021 draft eligible players that made NHL Central Scouting’s watchlist at the start of the season. Myklukha split last season between RB Hockey Akademie in Salzburg, Austria and the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the QMJHL. His 8 points in 21 games with the Huskies doesn’t jump off the page, but Myklukha has shown that he can comfortably share the ice with top QMJHL players. He’s a natural center, with shifty moves and the ability to exploit soft spots in the offensive zone.
Beyond the aforementioned four forwards, there are likely to be eight other forward spots up for grabs. With the Slovak trend of bringing eight defenders, the twenty remaining forwards will be cut down to eight. Among the remaining names are some interesting candidates.
Maxim Cajkovic is the elder statesman of the forward group and should be one of its top players. The 2019 3rd round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning is appearing in his second U20 World Juniors. He’s a natural right wing known for his strong skating ability and powerful shot. If the Slovaks are going to have goal scoring success, Cajkovic is one of the players they’ll be counting on the most.
Also returning for their second tournament are Michal Mrazik and Dominik Jendek. Mrazik is an imposing young forward, checking in at 6-foot-4. He’s done very well for himself this season playing in the Swedish U20 league. He operates well around the net and has some experience playing internationally for Slovakia. Mrazik will need to take a big step up in his production from his lone assist across 5 games last year if the Slovaks are to avoid relegation.
2020 NHL Draft pick Martin Chromiak is also in camp for Slovakia. In the second half of last season, Chromiak was a member of one of the most dynamic lines in the Ontario Hockey League with the Kingston Frontenacs. He has shown ability time and again as both a playmaker and shooting threat. On the breakout, Chromiak is a threat to create oddman rushes and 2-on-1 situations with his speed.
Chromiak has a good slap shot, a wrist shot with some zest on it and a snap shot that is simply too quick for some goaltenders to handle. It remains to be seen if he is the type of player who can take over and drive a line by himself. He has already proven he is the type of player who can successfully line up with a star forward and be a complimentary piece, but the relative talent level of his country’s roster is going to demand that he take on a bigger role.
There are three forwards in camp who played for the 2020 U20 team and are likely to do so again. The rest of the camp group includes a couple players ranked by central scouting, a 2020 NHL draft pick and some other intriguing young talent.
