Prospect watch in the WJC: Karlsson looking good

Although he had to live with the silver medal, Sens prospect Erik Karlsson received plenty of individual accolades as the tournament came to a close. Karlsson was named the tournament's best defenceman by the Directorate, was named among his team's top three players by the Swedish coaches, and was names Sweden's best player in the gold-medal game. He led Sweden in scoring with nine points (2G, 7A), tied for first place in scoring among defencemen with Canada's P.K. Subban. A pretty good showing for a pick who was criticized by some, and he had a pretty impressive moustache going, too. (No word on whether or not the moustache was in solidarity with his struggling future Senators teammates.)

Andre Petersson didn't have as many accolades, but he had a pretty good tournament, too. Tied for fourth in Swedish team scoring with six points (3G, 3A), and he was given the team's best player award in their round-robin victory over Russia.

For the USA, James O'Brien wasn't dominant on any night, but he had reliable production. He finished with four points (1G, 3A) in six games, and was +4 overall. Considering his age, and his first-round draft status, though, I think it's safe to say more was expected of O'Brien.

And I'd say it's also safe to say that John Tavares won the battle for first overall against Victor Hedman, at least for now. Hedman will certainly be a valuable member of an NHL team in the future, but Tavares was by far the better player in this tournament.

Prospect watch in the WJC: Day Eight

Huge game for prospect Andre Petersson against Russia, as he scored two goals in the 5-0 victory to earn Sweden a bye to the semi-finals. Petersson had three shots on goal and was +1 in the game, and other Sens prospect Erik Karlsson had one assist, four shots on goal, and was +1 as well. Petersson (3G, 3A) and Karlsson (2G, 4A) are tied for the team lead in points on the Swedish team with six each in the tournament so far.

In the other division, Jim O'Brien had one goal in USA's 7-3 loss to Canada on Wednesday. He's got four points (1G, 3A) in four games in the tournament so far, and will be facing off against Slovakia in the quarter-finals at 3:30 today.

And there are all sorts of Senators-related stories about the World Junior Championships, here's just a few if you're looking for something to read:

• "Heartbreaking loss for Lee", Ottawa Sun
• "World Junior Gold A Thrill For Smith", The Pembroke Daily Observer
• "McAmmond helped launch gold ", The Belleville Intelligencer
• "'The best time of my life'" (Brendan Bell), OttawaSenators.com
• "A memory worth saving for Auld" OttawaSenators.com
• "WJC memories pure gold for Hartsburg" OttawaSenators.com
• "Phillips savoured pair of junior golds" "Ottawa Senators.com
• "Donovan rolled perfect seven at WJC" OttawaSenators.com

Three points each for Sens' Swedish prospects

Each of Erik Karlsson and Andre Petersson, both draft choices of the Ottawa Senators, scored three points (a goal and two assists apiece) as Sweden routed Latvia 10-1 in WJC round-robin play. Karlsson's goal was on the powerplay, one of his assist was also with the man advantage (hello, PP quarterback... ) he assisted on the game-winning goal, had five shots, and was +2 on the night, while Petersson had four shots and was +1.

The tournament has been a coming-out party of sorts for Karlsson, who has five points in three games so far (2G, 3A), tying him with Magnus Svensson Paajarvi for the points lead on Sweden. Petersson was a relatively unheralded fourth-round pick, but has four points so far (1G, 3A) and has likely been a pleasant surprise for Sens scouts and management.

For anyone who's been watching, Victor Hedman had one assist for Sweden, four shots, and was +2. He hasn't been receiving as much powerplay time as Karlsson, though; against Slovakia on Sunday, Karlsson was the defender on a 5-on-3 while Hedman sat on the bench. A commenter suggested he may be injured, which might explain why his performance hasn't been quite as dominant as anticipated.

Anyone watching John Tavares: Two more points (1G, 1A) in the 5-1 win over Germany, good for nine points (5G, 4A) in the tournament. He's apparently three goals away from Eric Lindros' record for career goals in a World Junior Championship, and still has likely two more games this year and, technically, will be eligible for the 2010 WJC.

Prospect watch in the WJC: Day four

After an in-depth look at Erik Karlsson in Sweden's 3-1 victory over Slovakia, I'm optimistic. He was poised all night, and had a wicked shot: He scored a power-play goal on a very strong snap shot that went top corner. He also assisted on the game-winning goal, had five shots on net, and was +1 overall.
About his game: He fills the role of powerplay quarterback very well. He's got good vision in the offensive end, and was often the only Swede on the point while the other four pressured the Slovaks on the powerplay. He has good foot speed, and is agile enough to avoid hits more often than not. I would have to say that Karlsson had more poise than Victor Hedman, his defensive partner, who is expected to be in competition for the first-overall pick this year. There is a knock on Karlsson, and that's his size: 5'11", 168 lbs. There were two times that come to mind where it was an issue (neither resulted in a good scoring chance, though), but his speed usually makes up for what he lacks in size. And the other positive note is that size is something that you can--and he will--improve.

Andre Petersson was alright, but didn't really stand out. He took a roughing penalty, and had one shot on the night. His line was not the Swede's best one.

The final Sens prospect in the tournament, Jim O'Brien, played his second game of the tournament for USA, a 4-3 win. He had no points, four shots, and was even.

As for the Hedman watch, he wasn't quite what I expected. The scouting report that I'd heard was he was big like Zdeno Chara, and as poised as Nicklas Lidstrom (although maybe not quite to the same extent of either). Overall, though, he looked a lot more like Chara than Lidstrom, more of a hulking physical presence (he's 6'6" and 220 lbs) than an intimidating offensive threat. Hedman was far less impressive than Karlsson, but his size and his speed were very appealing; he may have simply been trying to do too much on the night.

Finally, John Tavares: He "only" had four points (2G, 2A) in a 15-0 win over Kazakhstan, and was +2 with nine shots. But he's only second in tournament scoring, with seven points in two games: Teammate Cody Hodgson has eight points in the tourney so far.

Prospect watch in the WJC: Day three

As mentioned in a previous post, the Senators have three prospects in the 2009 World Junior Championships, defenceman Erik Karlsson (1st round, 15th overall, 2008) and forward Andre Petersson (4th round, 109th overall, 2008), both playing for the Swedish squad, as well as centre Jim O'Brien (1st round, 29th overall, 2007), playing for the United States.

In their first game of the tournament, a 3-1 win over Finland, Petersson had an assist on the game-winning goal, and was +1 on the night. Karlsson, the much-heralded first-round pick, didn't record a point, but had three shots and was also +1 on the night.

Team USA's first game was an 8-2 victory for the Americans, and O'Brien had one assist with two shots on the night, and was +1.

As for the Victor Hedman/John Tavares sweepstakes, Tavares fared better in his tournament debut than Hedman. The two are considered the front-runners for the first-overall pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft: Hedman had two shots and was +1, while Tavares had two goals, one assist, two shots, and was +3 overall.

I'm going to the Sweden/Slovakia game tonight, so I'll certainly keep an eye out for Karlsson (number 5 for anyone watching), Petersson (number 20), and Hedman (number 4).

Wiercioch invited to Canadian junior camp

The Senators' second-round pick in 2008, Patrick Wiercioch, has been invited to the Team Canada world junior selection camp. He is among 14 defencemen invited to the camp, along with 20 forwards and four goaltenders. Wiercoch is the second-youngest defenceman invited, and is one of two with an Ottawa connection: Tyler Cuma plays for the 67s. Here's the listing of defencemen, or click here for the full list.

1. Keith Aulie
2. Tyler Cuma
3. Ryan Ellis
4. Cody Goloubef
5. Travis Hamonic
6. * Thomas Hickey
7. Kevin Marshall
8. Tyler Myers
9. Alex Pietrangelo
10. Brendan Smith
11. Jared Spurgeon
12. * P.K. Subban
13. Colten Teubert
14. Patrick Wiercioch
    * - denotes returning player.

In other World Juniors news, 2007 draft choice Jim O'Brien is on the USA Hockey World Junior Championship roster.

ADDENDUM: As a commenter said, there are two other Sens prospects will be playing in the tournament, both for Sweden: defenceman Erik Karlsson (1st round, 15th overall, 2008) and forward Andre Petersson (4th round, 109th overall, 2008).

Overheard at NHL Draft 2008

"Nashville! Wooo!" (Heard across the entire Scotiabank Place)

"...dat's a pop-tart with de ketchup"

"Tanguay, eh? Enjoy the extra 10 goals, Montreal"

"Who did we draft? Erik Karlsson or Karl Eriksson?"

Other unexpected events:

Standing ovation for Wayne Gretzky? Really? Sure, he's the greatest player ever, but he is the coach of an opposing team now.

18 year-old puts on Leafs jersey... we have a new enemy.

Alfredsson brings up last season before making the Sens' draft choice at the podium... why?

More thoughts

You know who might want to take a risk on a talented young goalie like Ray Emery? A team with very few goaltending prospects and a lackluster starter going into the final year of his contract: the Ottawa Senators.

Everyone got their hate on Garrioch yesterday. That's a cause I've been championing for months!

GM's unhappy with trigger-happy media - CBC
Trade everyone - Black Aces
The Garrioch Effect - Kulkas Korner

Round 2+ - Sens picks
42nd overall - Patrick Wiercioch
79. Zack Smith, c, Swift Current (WHL)
109. Andre Petersson, w, HV 71 Jr. (Sweden)
199. Derek Grant, c, Langley (BCHL)
139. Mark Borowiecki, d, Smiths Falls (CJHL)
199. Emil Sandin, lw, Brynas (Sweden)

...more to come...