GDT: World Junior Championships

[LTS]

12 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

You didn't like Cozens because he was kept to the perimeter and had no space. The checking of USA was great. Btw I agree about Cozens, I didn't love this game for him. 

Still thought Cozens was one of the better players on the CAN team in this game. 

12 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

Side note. Ryan Johnson was only noticeable to me when he did something good. Very solid game from him. He lacks the offense I think but I haven't watched him in a bit and he looked better. Solid #4 defender in the making. 

They seemed to rely more and more upon him. He was out there near the end of the game. He made some really good puck choices in his zone, under pressure. He's not going to knock people around, but he moves the puck very well and does not seem to panic.

12 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Still hard to believe we won that game.  That said USA was the better team most of the night.  I guess 19 1st rd picks creates pressure but not necessarily results.

Are we sure Cozens is ready?

Ready? He's about as ready as he's going to be at this point in time.  There was nothing wrong with him. He was dominant in this tournament among his peers. He's not going to dominate a game all by himself when playing in a game like last night. 

Canada fell down early and never recovered. They tried but failed.

[Norcal]

Ok USA!!!!!

[fiftyone]

If you could re-do the 2019 draft today, what does everyone think the Sabres would do if both Cozens and Zegras were available at 7? Still Cozens?

I don't know what i'd do myself, and somewhat of a crazy question after Cozens led Canada in scoring, but Zegras has kind of a different look to him IMO. Maybe not the presence on both ends of the ice that Cozens has, and surely the "flash" factor plays a role in potentially overrating Zegras, but you'd have to seriously consider both guys I'd think.

Edit: Not meant to be a "Sabres suck at drafting" post -- just that I remember there was some conversation about this when we made the pick, and the WJC rekindled it a bit. 

Edited January 6, 2021 by fiftyone

[dudacek]

27 minutes ago, fiftyone said:

If you could re-do the 2019 draft today, what does everyone think the Sabres would do if both Cozens and Zegras were available at 7? Still Cozens?

I don't know what i'd do myself, and somewhat of a crazy question after Cozens led Canada in scoring, but Zegras has kind of a different look to him IMO. Maybe not the presence on both ends of the ice that Cozens has, and surely the "flash" factor plays a role in potentially overrating Zegras, but you'd have to seriously consider both guys I'd think.

Edit: Not meant to be a "Sabres suck at drafting" post -- just that I remember there was some conversation about this when we made the pick, and the WJC rekindled it a bit. 

I'll take that a step further. Rank these players in the order you would pick them today:

• Jack Hughes
• Kappo Kakko
• Kirby Dach
• Bowen Byram
• Alex Turcotte
• Moritz Seider
• Dylan Cozens
• Philip Broberg
• Trevor Zegras
• Vasily Pokolzin

Real tight top 10 there IMO. I'm betting personal lists will be all over the map.

[fiftyone]

25 minutes ago, dudacek said:

I'll take that a step further. Rank these players in the order you would pick them today:

• Jack Hughes
• Kappo Kakko
• Kirby Dach
• Bowen Byram
• Alex Turcotte
• Moritz Seider
• Dylan Cozens
• Philip Broberg
• Trevor Zegras
• Vasily Pokolzin

Real tight top 10 there IMO. I'm betting personal lists will be all over the map.

Good question. I'm not sure that i've seen enough of all of them to be able to comment confidently, though Zegras and Cozens took center stage the last couple weeks to make that comparison a bit easier.

To your point though, it doesn't seem that there is much separation. I'd say Zegras may jump up the board the most. We know that we think Cozens will be strong, and i've read good things about Seider. I think Hughes and Kakko will be fine, even with their underwhelming rookie years. 

[dudacek]

The Athletic's Scott Wheeler watched the game with a handful of hockey development coaches, including two guys who work with Jack Quinn.

This is an interesting snippit in relation to what we saw:

Wheeler: Intermission Q for Pat and Josh: Been in touch with Quinn? Definitely one of those guys who’s had to take on a bit of a different role here. Also his first Hockey Canada experience. Must be a lot.

Malloy: Just a little to say good luck, have fun with it all, stay in the moment and enjoy the ride.

Wrobel: Talked after last game about how his mindset has changed to embrace the role. Example: Coming through the neutral and getting it deep and forechecking as opposed to his role in Ottawa, where he would be looking to make a play, as we’ve seen him go 1-on-2 or 1-on-3 sometimes and take it to the net.

 

[Curt]

39 minutes ago, dudacek said:

The Athletic's Scott Wheeler watched the game with a handful of hockey development coaches, including two guys who work with Jack Quinn.

This is an interesting snippit in relation to what we saw:

Wheeler: Intermission Q for Pat and Josh: Been in touch with Quinn? Definitely one of those guys who’s had to take on a bit of a different role here. Also his first Hockey Canada experience. Must be a lot.

Malloy: Just a little to say good luck, have fun with it all, stay in the moment and enjoy the ride.

Wrobel: Talked after last game about how his mindset has changed to embrace the role. Example: Coming through the neutral and getting it deep and forechecking as opposed to his role in Ottawa, where he would be looking to make a play, as we’ve seen him go 1-on-2 or 1-on-3 sometimes and take it to the net.

 

Coachable team player.