The Athletic Hockey Show – CanucksBanter

First, Max and Corey talk about IIHF President Luc Tardif’s comments that the 2022 World Junior Championship could take place in August, after the NHL Draft, and how the timing could impact the participation of some top prospects.

Next, the guys dive into their Olympic hockey breakdown, with Russia as the favorite to win the tournament, and discuss expectations for Team USA, including Strauss Mann getting an opportunity to prove himself on the world stage in goal, the role Jake Sanderson could play once he joins the team, and more.

Then, the guys give their thoughts on Team Canada and discuss Owen Power’s chance to repeat his 2021 WJC performance in Beijing, the potential offensive upside for Mason McTavish if he plays on a line with Eric Staal and Josh Ho-Sang, the odds of Jack McBain signing with an NHL club if he has a nice tournament, plus prospects to watch on Team Russia and Team Slovakia.

Plus, to close things out, the guys open up the mailbag and take some great listener questions about why Jonathan Lekkerimäki isn’t more widely considered a top-10 talent, the Boston Bruins plan for Jack Studnicka, Matthew Boldy’s chances of winning the Calder trophy this season, how Corey organizes his prospect scouting reports, why Corey rated Trevor Zegras’ puck skills as “NHL average”, whether the Detroit Red Wings prospect pipeline will make them contenders or not, why the New Jersey Devils passed on Cale Makar at No. 1 in the 2017 NHL Draft, an NHL comp for Jake Sanderson, how the Anaheim Ducks should approach the trade deadline, why Corey kept Lane Hutson out of his top-32 prospects list, if the Minnesota Wild are the real deal or not, how many potential first-line centers are in this year’s draft class, and some of the exciting prospects from non-traditional hockey countries.

First, Max and Corey, who visited Team Canada’s World Junior camp this week, give their early thoughts on the makeup of the team, including Hendrix Lapierre getting cut from the squad, and Connor Bedard essentially taking his spot, why Brandt Clarke wasn’t invited to camp, Owen Power’s potential impact, Kent Johnson’s anticipated arrival, and the team’s chances of winning gold, as well as Aatu Räty and Ivan Miroshnichenko not participating in the tournament for Team Finland and Team Russia, respectively.

Next, the guys, who were both in attendance at Team USA’s WJC camp, give their initial impressions of the team, and talk about Thomas Bordeleau’s unfortunate exit due to COVID-19, Logan Cooley’s role, Luke Hughes and Jake Sanderson as the real strength of the team on both sides of the puck, the pressure on Drew Commesso to be great in goal, and more.

Plus, to close things out, the guys answer listener questions including if it was a fluke that seemingly more “homer run” franchise players were drafted in the first decade of the 2000s as opposed to the second, Corey’s confidence in Conor Geekie’s NHL projection, the absence of CHL players on Russia’s WJC roster, expectations for Brock Faber at World Juniors, which pro league is best for developing forwards age twenty or older, standouts from Detroit’s “army of Swedish prospects”, which NHL teams will either make or miss the playoffs in the next few years because of their prospect pool, and early picks for WJC All-Stars and leading scorers.