Connor McDavid is still just a teenager, but he might be the single biggest draw at a World Cup tournament featuring hockey’s best.
A look at an intriguing talent from each of the eight teams competing in Toronto:
Connor McDavid
North America
McDavid, 19, is already a real threat to win the Art Ross Trophy next season as the league’s top scorer after posting 48 points in 45 games as a rookie. Before that though comes the two-week tournament in Toronto where the Oilers star will show off his considerable skills against hockey’s elite. Maybe most alluring is the prospect of the star from Newmarket, Ont., teaming up with other top youngsters like Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Nathan MacKinnon and Johnny Gaudreau. North America might be the team to watch for that reason alone.
Vladimir Tarasenko
Russia
Tarasenko hasn’t quite reached the Alex Ovechkin stratosphere of goal-scoring, but he’s rapidly moving in that direction for the St. Louis Blues. The 24-year-old hit a career-high with 40 goals last season and his 77 goals over the past two campaigns trail only Ovechkin (103) and Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos (79). Tarasenko draws attention every time he steps on the ice. Like Ovechkin, he’s an explosive scorer capable of creating something from nothing in an instant. Almost unnoticed as a member of Russia’s disappointing 2014 Olympic squad (zero goals), Tarasenko is unlikely to go quietly on the big stage in Toronto.
Patrik Laine
Finland
Laine thought that he and not Matthews should’ve been the No. 1 overall pick of the 2016 draft, and at the World Cup he’ll get his first chance to demonstrate why. An exuberant performer, Laine is coming off an unbelievable year that saw him thrive everywhere: from a championship-winning squad in the Finnish league, where he was playoff MVP, to a gold medal winner on home soil at the world junior championships, to the world championship in Russia, where Finland won silver. Laine only turned 18 in April, but he’s already exceptionally confident, on and off the ice, and that makes him an especially enticing figure to watch.
Erik Karlsson
Sweden
No other defenceman in hockey today is quite like the captain of the Ottawa Senators. Karlsson can be mesmerizing to watch for his ability to dish the puck, move with it across the ice and scout possibilities before they emerge as obvious. Over the past five NHL seasons Karlsson has rung up 314 points, 76 more than the next closest defender, Nashville’s P.K. Subban. Karlsson put up eight points in six games for Sweden at the 2014 Olympics. When good things are happening for the Swedes it’s likely Karlsson is involved and that makes him a focal point for a squad that’s a real threat to win.
Leon Draisaitl
Europe
One of only a handful of German players in the NHL, Draisaitl is easily the brightest young star suiting up for a veteran-laden Europe squad. His first full season for the Oilers was hugely promising, as the 20-year-old former No. 3 overall pick rung up 19 goals and 51 points, mostly in McDavid’s shadow. Skilled with a sturdy six-foot-one frame, Draisaitl and has been compared to Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar and the two will get a chance to play alongside one another at the World Cup. The Europeans are rich with veterans like Kopitar, Zdeno Chara and Marian Hossa, but short on excitable young talent. Draisaitl brings that element.
Tyler Seguin
Canada
Seguin has only represented Canada once before on the international stage and that was at the worlds in 2015 when he scored nine goals in 10 games for a gold medal winner. Coming off a frustrating end to the 2015-16 NHL season, which saw him injured for all but one game of the playoffs, Seguin is healthy now and ready to bring a flashy scoring element to the Canadian roster. His 107 goals over past three seasons tops even stars like Crosby and Stamkos. Only injured Stars teammate Jamie Benn and Ducks winger Corey Perry (both at 110) have scored more among Canadian players.
T.J. Oshie
U.S.
Oshie took a star turn at the Olympics in Sochi when he beat Russian goalie Sergei Bobrovsky four times on six shots in the U.S.’s 3-2 preliminary round win. The Mount Vernon, Wash., native is a rambunctious sort prone to drawing the ire of opponents and he has a knack for the back of the net, hitting a career-high with 26 goals for Washington last season. Oshie is a perfect representative of the Americans hard-nosed roster.
Petr Mrazek
Czech Republic
Save for the Flyers’ Jakub Voracek, the Czech roster is lacking in excitable talent. Mrazek, the Red Wings No. 1 netminder, has the skills to change that. The 24-year-old was maybe the top goalie in the world over the first half of last season, compiling three shutouts and a .932 save percentage before stumbling in the second half. Goaltenders can drastically alter short tournaments like the World Cup, with a single elimination semifinal, and Mrazek is just the type who could propel his country to unexpected heights.
Jonas Siegel, The Canadian Press
