Several of the San Jose Sharks prospects have made an impact playing for their respective countries at the IIHF World Junior Championship in Sweden. After a week of preliminary play, several names pop out. As we noted in our tournament preview, some of San Jose’s prospects are getting their first look at the world stage, while others are looking for a chance to make their mark.
The preliminary rounds are over and the quarterfinals are set. All of the teams have a day off before the elimination games begin on Jan. 2, 2024. All of the Sharks prospects will be playing in the quarterfinals.
Kasper Halttunen and Team Finland will take on Slovakia early in the morning. Then it’s Jake Furlong and Team Canada facing off against Czechia. Later on Jan. 2, Will Smith and Eric Pohlkamp on Team USA will play Latvia. And rounding out the night, Filip Bystedt and Mattias Havelid will play with their home country, Team Sweden, against Switzerland.
So, before the elimination games commence, let’s take a look at how all the Sharks players have done so far.
Canada’s Jake Furlong reliable in his role on the second defensive pairing
Defenseman Jake Furlong saw his playing time steadily increase as the tournament progressed. Furlong has played all four games for Team Canada, logging the third-highest minutes on the blueline. While Maveric Lamoureux (ARI) and Denton Mateychuk (CBJ) are firmly Canada’s top pairing on defense, Furlong is a steady third defenseman.
In the team’s first game against Finland, Furlong played 17:00 and finished the game a plus-1. His ice time rose to 18:50 in game two against Latvia. By game four against Germany, Furlong’s ice time was up to 19:52. He is currently a plus-4 for the tournament, though he doesn’t have any points.
Eric Pohlkamp adds value as seventh defenseman on Team USA
A lot of pundits had Pohlkamp as one of the last roster cuts after Team USA’s training camp. So, his performance in the World Juniors to date has been a happy surprise. Team USA dominated most of its opponents in the preliminary rounds and Pohlkamp’s ice time was passed over for some of the more offensively-minded defensemen. However, in the closest game, the one against Czechia, America’s coaching staff relied on Pohlkamp more heavily. His ice time was nearly doubled and he was often paired with the second line.
Pohlkamp has a goal and two assists in his first four games. It will be interesting to see what Pohlkamp’s deployment is as we enter the elimination games. USA is considered one of the tournament favorites. It has not played Canada or Sweden yet.
Will Smith overshadowed by his teammates
With all the firepower that Team USA has in this tournament, Will Smith is a bit of an afterthought. The US has scored 29 goals so far in the tournament and Smith has scored just two of them. It’s really a testament to how dominant America’s top players have been rather than how poorly Smith has played. Smith has been good, just not as good as the others.
For Sharks fans disheartened by this, remember that team leaders like Gavin Brindley and Cutter Gauthier have been here before. This is their second go-around in the WJC and this is Smith’s first. So far this tournament, Smith has 3 points and 10 shots on goal. Plus, Smith has the best faceoff percentage in the entire tournament. He’s 33-14 in the faceoff circle, winning 70.21% of his faceoffs. Canada’s Owen Beck is second on the list and America’s Gauthier is third.
Finally, take a minute to appreciate Smith’s game-tying goal against Czechia on Dec. 29. It was a thing of beauty.
Czechia's lead did not last long as Will Smith evens things up for Team USA!#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/MjTmbJFQpG
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 29, 2023
Kasper Halttunen warming up on Team Finland
Kasper Halttunen’s start to the World Junior Championship was a tough one. In fact, the entire start for Team Finland was unimpressive. Finland lost to Canada 5-2 in the opening game of the prelims and then dropped the next game to Germany by a score of 4-3. Halttunen was a minus-three in the first game and didn’t register a point. But he found his scoring touch in game two, notching his first goal of the tournament in the second period.
Halttunen has heated up since then, scoring 6 points (3 G, 3 A) in the first four games of the tournament.
“Kasper Halttunen has been the Finns’ best player. Even though he was struggling to convert his chances early in the tournament, he still managed to lead the team in scoring through the group stage. His bomb of a shot has been a threat game in and game out,” wrote Tony Ferrari of The Hockey News when previewing the quarterfinals.
Filip Bystedt regains his scoring touch at WJC
Filip Bystedt had seemingly regressed this season while playing in the SHL, however, he’s played better on the world stage in his home country. Bystedt has four points in four games including what would become the game-tying goal against Finland on Dec. 31. Finland ultimately handed Sweden it’s only loss in the tournament so far.
WHAT. A. GAME!!! Sweden claws back to take their first lead of the game with this goal from Filip Bystedt (#sjsharks)! #2024IIHFWorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/5PAguVmVKK
— Elite Prospects (@eliteprospects) December 31, 2023
It’s a good showing for Bystedt, who has struggled with scoring this season. Given how he’s playing now with Team Sweden, it’s conceivable that both he and Sharks’ management will decide it’s time to bring him to the states to play for the Barracuda when his season in the SHL ends. It appears like it’s time for the next step in Bystedt’s development.
Mattias Havelid impressive on defense for Team Sweden
Perhaps Mattias Havelid will join Bystedt in San Jose this spring. Havelid has played well for Sweden this tournament and has has points in four games. He is playing on the top defensive pairing for Sweden alongside Vancouver Canucks’ prospect Elias Pettersson.
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