The Kids' Table: Final Pre-WJC Thoughts

I know I've been beating the 2016 World Junior Championship to death lately, but there really isn't a better showcase for the future superstars of the NHL. With the tournament kicking off this weekend, exhibition games have already started and we're already getting a gist of what to expect from each team. It also helps that most people will be off from work due to the holidays, granting plenty of time to consume mass amounts of cookies while watching copious amounts of hockey.

In the spirit of Christmas, this week I'll give you as many thoughts, players, perspectives, reindeer, and maybe a couple of X-Mas sweaters as ugly as humanly possible to help make your World Junior experience all the more worthwhile.

The Leafs' future is bright

This has less to do with the tournament itself and more to do with the five players the Maple Leafs are sending. William Nylander (Sweden) and Mitch Marner (Canada) are two of the top prospects in all of hockey. Nylander has been arguably the most impressive player in the AHL this season, while Marner is experiencing another solid campaign in the OHL with the London Knights. Joining them is Kasperi Kapanen (Finland), defenseman Travis Dermott and forward Dmytro Timashov (Sweden), all of which figure to contribute greatly to their teams success at this year's tournament.

Nylander and Marner will likely be named to the WJC All-Star team, but the other three have a lot to prove. Kapanen just oozes with skill and offensive upside, but you'd think he'd be making an impact at the NHL level by now. Unfortunately, the Leafs are taking the slow approach with pretty much all their prospects. Dermott is a physically imposing blueliner who can also provide plenty of offense. Timashov is all speed and already showcased his skill in Sweden's exhibition game, notching three assists.

If there's any team to invest your keeper/dynasty picks in, it's Toronto. Mike Babcock is behind the bench and will have these kids playing at a high level in no time. There's also the possibility that the Leafs make a huge addition in the offseason (Steven Stamkos?), and while that is a bit far-fetched, it would set up all these prospects to be featured on a squad that may be a contender as soon as 2017-18.

The Canadians can score, but they'll win with defense

If you didn't catch Canada's exhibition game a few days ago, here are the lines they rolled out against the Czech Republic in a 1-0 shutout victory. Not only is Canada stacked with offense, they feature capable two-way forwards on pretty much every line.

The biggest standout comes from the second and third lines, though. Brendan Perlini (Coyotes), Mathew Barzal (Islanders) and Jake Virtanen (Canucks) make up a second unit that will play extremely physically on the boards, with Barzal providing that offensive punch down the middle. Canada's third line features a few top 2015 draft picks that opponents will hate to play against. Travis Konecny (Flyers) and Lawson Crouse (Panthers) are sort of like polar opposites; Konecny is a feisty player who will get under the opponents skin, while Crouse will pummel them into the boards and make them double take from his wrist shot.

Canada's top line of John Quenneville (Devils), Dylan Strome (Coyotes) and Marner will most likely be matched up against their opponents top unit, so that may make it more difficult for them – but not enough to limit them completely. This will open up opportunities for those bottom lines to produce and grind opponents down, leading to plenty of tired lines and defensive lapses that will translate into goals.

Huge tournament for Devils fans

I'm going to be a homer real quick and go over what this tournament means to my Devils. I already mentioned Quenneville, who has a golden opportunity playing alongside the very talented Strome and Marner. There's obviously a possibility he moves down a line or two, but regardless of his line, he'll still be asked to protect his teammates on the ice. Behind Pavel Zacha, whom we'll get to in a second, Quenneville is the Devils' top forward prospect and will likely make the jump to the AHL after his final season with the Brandon Wheat Kings. He's definitely a prospect to consider in dynasty formats, considering New Jersey's forward situation.

On to Zacha, who has been having the type of season Devils GM Ray Shero was hoping for when he drafted him sixth overall back in June. He has 17 goals in 30 games with the Sarnia Sting and will be the focal point on a Czech Republic squad that is always very competitive at this tournament. I've stressed this in the past: Zacha is basically the Devils' only hope for a top-six forward from their current prospect pool, so an impressive showing in Helsinki would be another step in the right direction.

Although MacKenzie Blackwood's suspension is disappointing, he'll still only miss two games in the tournament and managed to record a shutout in Canada's exhibition game against the Czechs, so chances are he'll get a chance to reclaim the starting spot once he's done sitting. Blackwood made some pretty spectacular saves Sunday, and the Devils have him up to succeed Cory Schneider in net once the veteran starts to decline in the later years of his massive contract.

Team USA has the leadership and firepower to win gold

At first glance, you wouldn't think that the United States took a step forward after losing a lot of talent from last year's team. But even without Jack Eichel, Noah Hanifin and Dylan Larkin, this team is set up to light the lamp more than you'd think this time around.

In 2015, USA was without defenseman Steve Stantini, who was supposed to captain the team and be a stalwart on the defensive end. Unfortunately he missed the entire tournament and while the team didn't lack leadership, something was missing. This time around, Jackets prospect Zach Werenskiwill be tasked with wearing the 'C' on his sweater and stepping up big for a blue line that features plenty of new faces. Werenski, who plays his college puck at Michigan, was very reliable in 2015 and has a chance to do something special in Finland. Defenseman Louis Belpedio (Wild) and forward Colin White (Senators) will serve as alternates.

Now, back to the firepower. We all know the big names from 2015 and the familiar names on this squad, but speed is the big difference. Alex DeBrincat (2016 eligible) and Christian Dvorak (Coyotes) are newcomers who will certainly bring a ton of offense. In fact, they already have, as each scored a goal in Team USA's 3-2 win over Finland in an exhibition game Tuesday. Both have played and competed with the top players from Canada while in the OHL, so they'll bring a lot of experience in an attempt to knock off their rivals to the North.

Fierce goaltending battles to come

First, let's start off with the guy who will start the tournament in net for Canada with Blackwood suspended: Mason McDonald (Flames). McDonald gets a golden opportunity to show his worth to the Calgary organization by standing tall in net and leaving no doubt that he can lead Canada to a second consecutive gold medal. He's got a ways to go before making a dent in the NHL, especially coming from the QMJHL, a league known notoriously for its ability to make goalies look horrible, but we all know what the Flames' goalie situation looks like.

The U.S. will be without Thatcher Demko (Canucks), and will ask Brandon Halverson (Rangers) and Alex Nedeljkovic to make up for his absence. Right now, Nedeljkovic has the upper hand on Halverson after allowing no goals on 15 shots in Tuesday's exhibition. Halverson started the game and allowed two goals on 12 shots. It's still early though, so expect coach Ron Wilson to figure something out before the preliminary round begins.

Outside of the North American prospects, there are a plethora of European netminders who will get a chance to showcase their abilities later in the week. One of the favorites to take home gold, Sweden will send Linus Soderstrom back to net for a second straight tourney. The 6-foot-5 Islanders draft pick fell short in 2015, so expect him to be very motivated heading to Helsinki.

Vitek Vanecek (Capitals), like Soderstrom, will get another shot at leading his Czech squad again in 2016. Unlike Soderstrom, Vanecek and the Czech's didn't have the greatest tournament in Montreal/Toronto last year, so expect a similar fire to be lit under his pads. Vanecek has shown well in pro hockey this season, which is quite the feat for a 19-year-old, even if it is the ECHL.

Another Capitals pick, Ilya Samsonov, might be the best goaltending prospect in this entire tournament. He's been a stud in the KHL this season and was stellar in U-18 play for Russia in 2014-15, posting a 1.87 GAA and .945 save percentage in seven games combined. The Russians are always known for their powerful forwards and high-scoring system, but Samsonov gives them a real ace in the hole as they try to return to the gold-medal game after losing to Canada last year.

Holiday cheer

The whole point of this tournament is to allow a bunch of kids to compete in front of a national stage, which will probably be the biggest moment of their young careers. Sure, a lot of them are "property" of your fantasy hockey dynasty team or prospects you've stashed in your keeper league, but that shouldn't discourage you, should they struggle on the ice. They're all under 20 years old, for crying out loud! So cut them some slack, grab some eggnog you weren't able to put down on Christmas, maybe a couple of Molsons too, and get ready for some exciting, energetic hockey action.