A major reason why North America Prospects had been undefeated heading into the playoff round at the U14 Girls World Selects Invitational was goaltending. In our Round 1 recap, we looked at the performances of Bailey Unruh and Rylee Allison as two key factors in the success of the club. Throughout the playoffs, both Unruh and Allison continued their solid play to backstop NAP to a championship over the Sweden Selects.
In Sweden’s semifinal win against Minnesota Prospects, the team’s incredible scoring depth was on full display. Six different players found the back of the net, allowing them to take a 6-2 lead into the second period. Liv Heinicke took advantage of a power play opportunity to make it a three-goal deficit. However, Minnesota was unable to gain any momentum offensively other than that. Alice Nilson (1G, 2A), Ida Lindberg (2A) and Elsa Lake (2A) all collected two points for Sweden. With the win, Sweden guaranteed its spot in the final against North American Prospects.
After NAP defeated DraftDay 5-1 in the quarterfinals, France was the next opponent on their calendar. Despite having one of the best team defenses at the tournament, they were unable to contain the high-powered offense of NAP in a 4-2 loss. Things started well for France in the game, as Gabrielle Roussel opened the scoring 3:25 into the first period. Mia Skinner tied the game at 1-1, which is where things stood heading into the first intermission. Both squads exchanged goals in the early moments of the second half before NAP pulled away. Goals from Lily Martin and Maya Dutton secured the victory. Allison stopped 16 of 18 shots she faced between the pipes.
Sweden came out hot in the championship game, putting up two goals in just over a minute to take a 2-0 lead. Nova Krantz struck first at 11:25 before Emma Hesselvall netted her third of the playoffs. Hessselvall scored in all three of Sweden’s playoff matchups. Shortly after, NAP cut the lead in half when Melaina Struna found the back of the net. At 4:23 of the second period, Adrienne Erickson tied the game at 2 with a power-play goal. Despite outshooting Sweden 18-2 in the second, NAP was unable to find another goal. The championship would be decided in a shootout. Jaiden Krushelniski, who led NAP in the preliminary round with seven points, was the only shooter to score in the skills competition. Allison once more came up huge in net, making 22 saves.
Want more coverage of the top teams and top players in youth hockey? Follow WHH on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube!
At last year’s 15U World Selects Invitational (WSI), Ryan Roobroeck broke the all-time tournament record for points. A mark that stood for 10 years, Roobroeck scored 28 points for Pro Hockey to help break the record and win the 2022 WSI. That mark stood for just 350 days, as Alex McLean would one-up Roobroeck’s mark this past weekend in Nashville.
McLean — a Canadian-born forward who played for No. 3 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite this season — scored an empty-net goal with 17 seconds left in the tournament to put the championship game away, 4-1 over DraftDay-Black. That goal broke the scoring record and set a new mark of 29 points in a single tournament. Additionally, the final goal of the ‘08 WSI earned CCM All Out the gold medal, and title as 15U world champions of youth hockey.
The team’s 9-0-0 record in the Music City, and an astounding plus-62 goal differential is one of the most dominant performances in WSI history. Especially considering that the tournament featured 51 games decided by two goals or fewer, CCM All Out stood out from the crowd in a very competitive field of teams. Eighteen games were decided by a shootout, but not when it came to CCM. They defeated opponents by an average margin of victory of nearly seven goals per game.
McLean, Rudlfs Berzkalns, Maximus Crete and Kent Greer were some of the biggest performers for CCM — and the entire tournament — on their path to a 15U world championship.
Alex McLean began the tournament with a six-point performance against Toronto Elite Hockey on Wednesday. The following day, McLean recorded back-to-back multi-point performances against ALPS Selects and NorthStar Elite Green. The 5-foot-9 forward finished pool play with 20 points, as CCM All Out earned the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.
Teammates Rudolfs Berzkalns and Maximus Crete were major factors in the offense as well. Berzkahlns — a Lativa native who played last season for national champion Bishop Kearney Selects — factored in on 18 of McLean’s 29 points scored this week. He finished second with 20 total points, while Crete had 19.
Additionally impressive was the performance of McLean’s teammate Kent Greer. Both played for Pens Elite this past season, both played for CCM All Out this weekend, and both led their respective positions in scoring. Greer is a 5-foot-9 defenseman who is one of the best at the position in North America. He led all defensemen with 18 points; 10 more than any other D-man.
In the elimination rounds, McLean scored four goals and nine points. That was nearly half of his team’s offense in the playoffs, with 7-1, 6-0, 3-0 and 4-1 wins en route to a championship. In 360 minutes of game action, CCM All Out never trailed.
The ‘08 WSI in Nashville was just one of 12 World Selects events scheduled for this spring and summer. Team Minnesota was victorious at the ‘07 WSI this weekend as well, after defeating Performance Hockey 4-1 in the championship. North American Prospects won the first girls’ tournament of the season, taking the U14 title over Sweden Selects. On top of that, Toronto Elite won the 12U AAA tournament in Bolzano, Italy, as well.
Three more World Selects tournaments are slated for this week. The 2011 Boys Elite square off in Italy as well. ‘09 AAA and ‘10 AAA tournaments take place in Prague, Czech Republic and Chamonix, France on Wednesday.
Want more coverage of the 2023 World Selects tournament series? WHH is the exclusive media provider of the WSI and will have wall-to-wall coverage of all 12 of its events! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube!
The 2023 12U World Selects Trophy was held this week in Bolzano, Italy. Eight teams from seven different countries participated in the annual tournament. The players were not distracted from the stunning views and food of the host city, as the games were action–packed with great talent on display. In the end, Toronto Elite emerged victorious over Pro Hockey after getting hot once the playoff round kicked off on Saturday. Here’s how they got to the final contest, and who were the biggest performers.
Despite scoring first in its introductory matchup of the tournament, Toronto was unable to keep the Czech Knights at bay for the rest of the contest. The Knights went on to score three unanswered goals. Despite a heroic performance in net by Ethan Rodrigues, where he made 32 saves on 35 shots, Toronto was unable to claw its way back. It was a difficult game for Elite to stay out of the penalty box as well, as they were whistled for six infractions. The Czechs were able to take advantage of two of those power plays.
Following that loss, Toronto regrouped and posted wins against Finland, Slovakia, Sweden and Latvia to close out pool play. In total, they out-scored their opponents in that run 21-6. The squad displayed great depth as well, with 12 of its 14 skaters recording at least one point across the preliminary round. Finishing first among the team were Liam Kozlowski and Adrian Leung, who had identical stat lines of four goals and three assists. Numbers that were good enough to tie with five other players for fifth overall among all skaters. Goaltending also played a crucial role in Toronto’s pool play performance. While Rodrigues continued to get playing time, Jordan Strathlee emerged as a valuable asset to form a dynamic tandem. He would finish with a 1.00 goals-against average and .931 save percentage over the club’s first five games. The two also each recorded a shutout.
Finishing with a 4-1-0 record, Toronto secured the No. 2-seed heading into the playoff round, which gave them a bye into the semifinals. Joining them with a straight ticket to round 2 was the No. 1-seeded Knights. No. 3-seed Slovakia guaranteed a matchup with Toronto with a victory over Latvia in the quarterfinals. The Czechs were positioned to battle No. 5-seed Pro Hockey in their quarterfinal clash.
Caden Down finished pool play with two goals and five points, and didn’t miss a beat once the playoffs began. His goal in the first period against Slovakia ignited a three-goal opening frame for Toronto. In the second, Jordan Hussain emerged as a secondary scoring threat. With Toronto holding to a 4-2 lead, Hussain struck twice in just over a minute to open up a 6-2 lead in the second period. He added a third point with an assist on Cameron Steven’s late goal in regulation to wrap up a 7-2 win. Pro Hockey defeated Finland in the semifinals, which set up a tilt with the heavily-favored Knights. After the Czechs scored first, Finn Helminen responded quickly for Pro Hockey and tied the game at 1.
Pro Hockey scored twice more early in the second period to take a 3-1 lead. Showing their resolve, the Knights found their way back to evening the score with two goals from Petr Potač. Lachlan McGuire stunned the Czechs when he put home a shot with just over a minute left in regulation. A win that set up a championship game meeting with Toronto.
The opening frame was a statement from Toronto, where they opened up a 4-1 lead by its end. Down scored twice, and Hussein notched another assist on a goal from Leung. Lachlan McGuire managed to get Pro Hockey on the board to make it a 2-1 game before Toronto redoubled the lead. Despite numerous attempts to cut into the deficit, Pro Hockey was unable to get back in the game. A big reason for that was the team’s ability to keep McGuire in check for the second period. As a result, they were crowned 2011-born champions with a 5-2 final. McGuire finished pool play second overall in scoring with four goals and nine points. He had six goals and seven points to his name heading into the championship game. Hussein and Down ended up tied for second in playoff scoring with Pro Hockey’s Brendan Rogers with four points each.
Want more coverage of the 2023 World Selects Invitational series? WHH is the exclusive media provider of all 12 WSI events, so be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube for the latest news!
When the U14 Girls World Selects Invitational kicked off on Wednesday, there were 12 participating teams with hopes of being the last club standing. After 60 preliminary round games and playoff quarterfinals, there are four teams remaining. France, Minnesota Prospects, Sweden Selects and North American Prospects are the four clubs left with an opportunity to be crowned champions on Saturday.
France began their pool play schedule with back to back shutouts against Italy Selects and Pro Hockey. In its next two contests, they suffered losses to Midwest Prospects and North American Prospects by scores of 2-1 and 5-0, respectively. They rebounded in the final game with a 5-0 victory over Swiss Selects. Maëlie Moussier led the team with four points, all assists. She collected one in every game but the loss to NA Prospects. Second in team scoring was Isabella De Gaulmyn with one goal and two assists. 11 of France’s remaining 15 skaters all recorded at least one point across the five preliminary round games. In the three wins, France held opponents to four shots twice, and 12 shots once. In the two losses, they gave up 29 and 21 shots.
France entered the quarterfinals as the No. 5-seed and was once again matched with No. 4-seed Midwest Prospects. It was another close game, with a strong defensive and goaltending effort backstopping France to a 2-0 victory. Following a scoreless first period, Sophie Gailly broke the deadlock close to four minutes into the second. Domitille Ratto doubled the lead with a power-play goal near the end of regulation. In net, Maya Bidet Visconti and Alice Chevrier were unbeatable. The duo split duties and turned aside six shots and 14 shots, respectively, for the combined shutout. Next up, France will try and replicate another strong effort against the No. 1-seed North American Prospects. Whether France’s defense holds up or if the NA Prospects can find a way to break through should make for an intriguing semifinal matchup.
Only one team remains undefeated throughout pool play and the quarterfinal round. A large reason why North American Prospects found themselves entering the playoff round as the top-seeded club was a result of its goaltending. Statistically, Bailey Unruh and Rylee Allison have been the best players between the pipes at this year’s tournament. They have held teams to just three goals across six games thus far. Unruh has recorded a 0.32 goals-against average and .962 save percentage. Allison, meanwhile, has a 0.50 goals-against average and .947 save percentage.
Despite a 5-0-0 record in preliminary round play, it wasn’t as easy as it sounds. Three victories came via shutout, but it was the Finland Selects and Czech Selects that gave NA Prospects some nervous moments. Jaiden Krushelniski, leading scorer for NAP with seven goals, put the team on her back in a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory against Finland. Down 2-1, she scored the tying goal late in the second period before finishing off the win with the overtime winner. Maya Dutton notched the game-winner in a 1-0 victory against the Czechs.
In their quarterfinal matchup with Draftday, Krushelniski collected another three goals and Dutton added another in a 5-1 final. A rematch is now in the cards against France in the semifinals, who fell to NAP 5-0 in pool play. If this second battle between the two sides plays out like the first, all eyes will be on Dutton and Krushelniski. Two players that will make life difficult for France to try and contain.
No other team scored more in the preliminary round than Minnesota Prospects. Recording 29 goals across five games, they were led by Carmen Benedict’s seven goals and nine points. Her point total was good enough to tie for second overall in pool play with Sweden Selects’ Ebba Hesselvall. Minnesota displayed some of the best depth of any team throughout its lineup, as all but one player recorded at least one point. For an offense that averaged close to six goals a game, time would shortly tell if they could keep up a dynamic attack in the playoffs.
And continue it did, as they bested the defending-champion Czech Selects in the quarterfinals, 6-4. Things got off to a quick start when Amálie Karásková put the Selects up 1-0 just 59 seconds into the game. 25 seconds after, Mia Sutch struck twice in just under three minutes to give Minnesota a 2-1 lead. Helena Neckářová tied the game at 2 shortly after before Karásková collected her second goal minutes later. The Prospects swung momentum back in their favor when they pounced for four goals in the final several minutes of the period to take a 6-3 lead into intermission. The second frame was not as eventful as the first, but Karásková managed to complete her hat trick with her second shorthanded tally.
As a result, Minnesota will take to the ice against Sweden Selects in the semifinals. With players such as Sutch, Benedict and Hesselvall, it should be a fast-paced tilt with goals galore on both sides.
Heading into the final day of pool play, the Sweden Selects were one win away from a perfect 5-0-0 record. Instead, they skated to a 1-0 loss to Pro Hockey. Through fate – or just a coincidental result from overall team records – they were tasked with a second game with Pro Hockey a mere few hours later. The main difference being that the winner would move on to the semifinal round of the playoffs.
Abbey Petro was in goal for a 26-save shutout in the first meeting, but Emily Perrier started between the pipes for the second. Right from puck drop, Sweden attacked with full force and jumped out to a 3-0 lead by the end of the first period. Emma Holmberg scored twice, and Ebba Hesselvall added one as well. After the third goal, Petro was put back in the crease. The move seemed to have ignited a fire in Pro Hockey. Coming out of the intermission, they scored the next two goals which cut Sweden’s lead to 3-2. In search of the equalizer, Petro was pulled for the extra attacker. Instead it was the Selects scoring twice on the empty net to secure a 5-3 win.
Stemming from that result, No. 2-seed Minnesota Prospects will now take on No. 3-seed Sweden for a chance at the championship game. Both squads like to score, and have plenty of top-tier talent among their rosters. If the goaltending of Minnesota holds, Sweden may be in for a long game. But if past results are any indication of things to come, the Selects know a thing or two about putting pucks in the net.
World Hockey Hub will have continued coverage of the Girls U14 World Selects Invitational! Follow WHH on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube for the latest news, updates and more!
Pool play is over at the ‘08 World Selects Invitational from Nashville. A field that started with 34 teams has been cut down to 24 left in the hunt for youth hockey’s world championship. Eighty-five games featuring some of the best 2008-born youth hockey players has seen 44 of those contests decided by two goals or fewer. It’s been a tightly contested tournament thus far, and playoff hockey moving forward should only continue that trend.
Elimination rounds begin on Friday afternoon with eight play-in games. Winners of those matchups will advance to face the top eight seeds in the round of 16.
Here’s how I see the playoffs unfolding in the Music City:
Chaos in the early rounds could lead to chalk in the later rounds. I like Team Minnesota — the last team to qualify for the playoffs as the 24-seed — to pull off not one, but two upsets. Andrew Clark, Danny Peate and Ryder Siedow have shown to be offensive threats. Plus, I feel like Kazakhstan Selects may have benefitted from a weaker schedule in pool play. Obviously, not something they could control but all three of their wins came against teams that have already been eliminated from the tournament. I like Team MN to be victorious, but really whoever wins that 9-v-24 matchup should make it to the quarterfinals.
I like another Minnesota-based team to pull off a stunner in the opening round as well. Hard not to, I mean there’s six playoff teams that call the State of Hockey home. Similar to Kazakhstan, I think Swiss Selects benefitted from a 3-0-0 start against opponents that failed to qualify for the playoffs. Minnesota Generals, on the other hand, have played everyone tough, even in defeat. They win on Friday and set the stage for a Generals-vs-SKA Yunost rematch from Thursday — SKA defeated the Generals 4-1 and out-shot them 30-19 in the process.
CCM Selects and Finland Selects have set themselves apart from the group in a big way. I like the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds to cruise to the semifinals, but only have one of them making it to the championship.
Should ID Selects and CCM clash in one half of the bracket, it’ll be the greatest collection of ‘08-born North American talent you’ll find in one place all year. J.P. Hurlbert, Michael Berchild, Cam Nimmer, Lukas Zajic on one side for ID. Alex McLean, Kent Greer, Maximus Crete, Avry Antsis on the other for CCM. It has the makings for an offensive track meet; a 6-4 type final. If you win that game, you win the tournament.
Finland Selects’ top players are something special. We’ve talked about players like Oliver Torkki and Viljo Kahkonen for about six months now. The team’s offense is dynamic, but in the playoffs of these elite tournaments, I think Finland may struggle to score. Teams tighten up defensively when it’s best on best. I just don’t see those top players having enough time and space to continue producing against Minnesota Blades, ID Selects and CCM. I’ll take Finland to squeak by the Blades, but come up just short in the title game.
Want to follow along with the action? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube for more!
Winnipeg, Manitoba, CAN — Today, PLAY Hockey announced the acquisition of the World Hockey Group’s (WHG) North American and European events. The acquisition expands PLAY Hockey’s global youth hockey events in Europe and North America. With the addition of the WHG, PLAY Hockey is now proud to host guests at over 90 events each year in addition to operating over 400 youth hockey teams.
“This strategic acquisition allows us to align the two most prestigious youth hockey brands.” said Josh Thiem, President of PLAY Hockey. “This could not have been completed without the excellent work of our corporate development team that is constantly looking for opportunities to enhance our portfolio of hockey events, and by extension, the opportunities and experiences we are able to provide to players and families.”
The addition of the WHG will merge two prominent youth hockey tournaments hosted in Europe, the World Youth Championships and World Selects Invitational (WSI), creating the most elite youth hockey event in the world. PLAY Hockey is also proud to add the North American WSI hockey events to its roster.
“This allows us to expand global opportunities for elite youth hockey players and scale up experiences for players,” said Sergai Zak, World Selects Invitational general manager. “We will now be able to deliver even more valuable opportunities for players and their families across the world.”
About PLAY Hockey
PLAY Hockey Canada and its solely owned subsidiary PLAY Hockey USA which operates as PLAY Hockey owns and operates youth hockey events in countries worldwide including Canada, USA and Europe.
About the World Hockey Group
World Hockey Group specializes in sports tours and travel throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe. We offer a wide variety of experiences which includes organizing a tailored sports tour for your specific needs. Players practice, compete against, and participate in fun activities with players from many different countries. Guests also tour their destination cities, taking in area attractions including museums, historic sites, and natural wonders.
Nearly 70 games are in the books at the 15U World Selects Invitational in Nashville. The tournament nears the halfway point, as playoff matchups will begin Friday afternoon and a champion ultimately crowned on Sunday. WHH takes a look at 10 teams with the best odds of winning the ’08 Elite world championship.
Disclaimer: This is purely for entertainment purposes only. We do not encourage sports betting on youth hockey games in any form.
 | Western Selects |  | 2-1 |
 | CCM Selects | | 3-1 |
 | Finland Selects |  | 3-1 |
 | ID Selects | | 5-1 |
 | Minnesota Blades | | 8-1 |
 | SKA Yunost |  | 8-1 |
 | Swiss Selects |  | 15-1 |
 | Minnesota Lakers | | 16-1 |
 | DevCo Hockey |  | 20-1 |
 | National Hockey Prospects | | 30-1 |
Led by a pair of Los Angeles Jr. Kings in Tyus Sparks, Logan Stuart and Noah Davidson, Western Selects comes in as the current front-runner through four games. Each Jr. King has scored at least three goals apiece, with Sparks leading the charge with seven points. They did fall 5-1 to another favorite on the list, Minnesota Blades.
CCM Selects has won, and won big in all four games so far. We talked about some of their standouts thus far, and they’ve continued to tear it up into Day 2. Through four games, their average margin of victory 7.75 goals. However, their opponent’s combined record in the tournament is 1-13-0.
Viljo Kahkonen and Oliver Torkki have shown out to be two of the most productive ’08s in the tournament. That duo has led Finland Selects to a 3-0-0 start, and has combined for 17 points; the team as a whole has scored 22 goals.
ID Selects is loaded with some of the top talent in the U.S. That includes forward Cam Nimmer whose fresh off of a national championship run. Michael Berchild leads the team with six points. That’s matched by defenseman A.J. Francisco who began the tournament with points in three straight games.
ID Selects will open up Friday morning action against SKA Yunost. That matchup could have significant playoff seeding implications as well.
As mentioned, Minnesota Blades did beat Western Selects on Thursday. Forward Riley Zupfer posted three points in the win for Minnesota. He leads the team in scoring with seven points, and factored in on half the Blades’ offense.
Want more coverage of the 2023 World Selects Invitational series? WHH is the exclusive media provider of all 12 WSI events, so be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube for the latest news!
Some of the top young prospects in youth hockey will converge on Toronto for the HHOF Future Legends Invitational. Established in 2017, this invite-only event was designed to showcase some of the top talent at the boys U12 age level and girls U13 age level.
The tournament is unique to youth hockey for a multitude of reasons. The main one being that upon arrival, individual players are unaware of what team they will be competing for in the tournament. It’s not until the opening ceremonies on Thursday afternoon, when players are ‘drafted’ onto evenly balanced teams. Those teams are named after iconic Hockey Hall of Famers such as Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr, Nicklas Lidstrom, Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy, among others.
Once assigned to a tournament team, players compete in four pool-play games before a single-elimination tournament starts on Saturday. In addition to playing high-level hockey against top competition, players are thrust into a locker room with new teammates. Former winter club teammates also transition to foes, as they compete against one another for the weekend.
The weekend’s festivities include a private viewing of the Hockey Hall of Fame in downtown Toronto. Participants can get an up close, intimate look at the Stanley Cup, and other historical pieces.
The Future Legends Invitational is still in its infancy, compared to the rich histories of The Brick Invitational (33 years) and PeeWee Quebec (62 years). In fact, some of the earliest participants from the Future Legends tournament have yet to reach NHL Entry Draft eligibility. However, that hasn’t stopped participants such as Michael Misa, Matthew Schaefer, Will Horcoff and Christian Humphries from forging a future in hockey.
After receiving exceptional status, Misa was selected first overall in the 2022 OHL Priority Selection as an ‘07 selected amongst players from the ‘06 birth year. One year later, Schaefer went first overall in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection. Both were standouts from the Future Legends Invitational in 2018. Another notable alumni from that year was the first overall pick in the 2022 WHL Bantam Draft, Gavin McKenna. The Yukon Territories native most recently set the record for most points scored in the Canada Winter Games. He’s scored 18 points in 16 WHL games already, and will play his first full season of junior hockey next fall.
In the States, Humphries was one of the top scorers this season for the U.S. National Team Development Program (USNTDP). He was also a part of the inaugural Future Legends Invitational in 2017. One year later, Detroit native Will Horcoff would follow that path to Toronto for the invite-only showcase and compete against Misa, Schaefer, McKenna and others. More recently, one year later, Horcoff is set to follow in Humphries’ wake again to the USNTDP next fall.
Almost 200 of the top 2011-born boys youth hockey players will be in Toronto for the Future Legends Invitational. Roughly 100 girls from the same birth year, and 160 boys from the 2012 birth year will also compete in their respective age groups. Draft ceremonies are slated to begin Thursday, with off-ice combine testing and games to start shortly after.
Girls division games begin at 8 a.m. EST on Friday, while both boys divisions get underway on Thursday afternoon. All games are available to watch on HNLive.ca. Players will participate in on- and off-ice testing, meant to replicate the experience that prospects undergo during the NHL Combine. The Future Legends Invitational is an all-encompassing experience for youth hockey players to feel like the pros. Draft ceremonies, combine testing, elite-level games and exclusive tours of the Hockey Hall of Fame make this a must for top-level youth hockey players.
World Hockey Hub will have exclusive coverage of the HHOF Future Legends Invitational throughout the weekend. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube!
The best 2008-born youth hockey players in the world took to the ice at the 15U World Selects Invitational on Wednesday. Thirty-four teams from 12 countries squared off in Nashville, Tennessee, for the 14th annual WSI. Teams began pool play with two games each on the opening day of the tournament.
In 12 hours, more than 30 games went down across three rinks in the Music City. A lot of action crammed into a short amount of time saw plenty of standout performers. Canada’s Alex McLean, American-born Cooper Soller and Finnish forward Viljo Kahkonen were among those to make an early statement on the international stage.
Coming into the tournament, CCM Selects were one of the early favorites to perform well at the 15U WSI. Alex McLean being on the roster was one of the reasons for that, after scoring 112 points for the 14U Pittsburgh Penguins Elite this past season. He delivered in a big way in the first game of the tournament, with a six-point performance in a 12-3 win over Toronto Elite Hockey.
That game was the largest margin of victory among all contests on opening day. While CCM Selects were certainly thought of as a top team in the field, the dominant win validated just that.
Their second game of the day came against another North American-based program in Top Speed Hockey. And again, provided little resistance as CCM rolled to a 9-1 win. Defenseman Zach Nyman was a standout on the No. 1 ranked Vaughan Kings this season. He proved why with back-to-back three-point performances as a major factor in both wins for CCM Selects.
With 21 goals in just the first two games of the tournament, CCM Selects players dominate the scoring leaderboard. McLean, Nyman, Maximus Crete, Avry Antsis and Rudolfs Berzkalns are all among the top producers at the WSI thus far.
For as dominant of wins as CCM Selects has had in its first two games, there have been plenty of tight contests out of the gate.
A matchup between the Carolina Whalers and Kazakhstan Selects was just that, tied 3-3 with under 10 minutes to play in regulation. Then, Cooper Soller struck not once but twice in the waning moments to give the Whalers a 5-3 victory. Soller factored in on all five goals scored in the win, plus an assist in their 5-2 loss earlier in the day. The 5-foot-9 forward is no stranger to producing offense; he scored 31 goals and 76 points for the No. 1 ranked team in the U.S., Shattuck-St. Mary’s this season.
Factoring in on six of his team’s seven goals, no other player in the tournament has accounted for more of his team’s offense so far than Soller.
Viljo Kähkönen split time this past season playing up an age group for HIFK’s U16 team. The other half, he spent playing up even further with the club’s U18 team. It didn’t matter where he played, he produced, with 10 goals and 29 points in 29 games between the two rosters. It should come as no surprise that now playing against the best of his 2008 birth year, Kähkönen continues to produce at an impressive clip.
In Finland Selects’ first game of the tournament Kähkönen scored a pair of goals and assisted on two more. That led to a dominant 7-0 win over DraftDay Red. Him and fellow HIFK teammate Oliver Torkki could prove to be an impressive tandem at the WSI. Torkki was one of the leading scorers at the U16 age group in Finland this season. He picked up a pair of points alongside Kähkönen as well.
DraftDay Black got a 28-save performance out of Andrew McLouth in Game 1 of the WSI. They needed every one of those stops against ALPS Selects as Noah Barton scored the game-winning goal with 4:08 left in regulation. The 2-1 final was one of 14 games decided by two goals or less on the opening day of action.
McLouth is a 5-foot-11 goaltender who played for HoneyBaked this season. His showing in net was one of the better performances on Day 1, fueling a DraftDay Black victory.
He wasn’t the only one to steal a victory for his team. Andover, Minnesota native, Cash Cruitt stopped 24-of-25 shots faced against Pro Hockey White. That helped his Minnesota Blades team get out to a 1-0-0 start to the tournament with a 4-1 win despite being out-shot 25-20 in the contest.
Other standouts in net include Kazkhstan Selects Arseniy Kuchkovskiy, who’s stopped 37-of-40 shots in two games. ALPS Selects goaltenders Lenny Oppikofer and Nicolas Arcilla strung together back-to-back games of 24 and 25 saves. Each have allowed just two goals against, however, ALPS was unable to win either of those games despite the strong showings in net.
The 11-team 16U World Selects Invitational is running concurrent to the 15U tournament in the Music City this week. After six games on Day 1, NorthStar Elite Green sits comfortably in first place. A pair of goals from Cruz Martin helped NorthStar to a 6-1 win over Black Bear Selects. Black Bear was the lone team to play two games on opening day. They fell to Performance Hockey 5-1 as well.
Of the six games on Day 1, three were decided by two goals or fewer. TPH Selects and DevCo Hockey needed a shootout to settle their 2-2 tie. Michael Zajac’s goal, as well as Marcus Johnson’s three stops, were the difference in the shootout for TPH Selects.
Tournament action continues Thursday with 10 pool-play games.
Want more coverage of the World Selects Invitational? Visit our WSI Hub or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube for the latest news!
The U14 Girls World Selects Invitational kicked off on Wednesday in Chamonix, France. Twelve teams from nine countries are competing for the chance to be crowned world champions. All participating teams have two games under their belts after the first day of action. Here’s some of the biggest headlines out of the tournament thus far.
The Sweden Selects made a major statement in their first two contests of the preliminary round. Facing off against Midwest Prospects and Draft Day — two North American-based clubs — Sweden outscored them both by a combined 10-2. A major reason for that offensive explosion was the dependable two-way play of Ebba Hesselvall. Facing a 1-0 deficit after the first period against Midwest, Emma Holmberg tied things up 18 seconds into the second. Hesselvall would score her first two goals following that to secure a 3-1 win. Not done there, Hesselvall kicked off the scoring in the club’s second game of the day; an eventual 7-1 win over DraftDay. She would add three assists as well, ending the day atop the leaderboard with three goals and six points.
If the Sweden Selects were all about offense, France was all about defense in its first two matchups of the U14 WSI. Italy Selects and Pro Hockey squads were unable to solve the incredibly tight defense of France, as both were shutout 2-0. Italy was only able to produce three shots on goal, while Pro Hockey managed 14. Of the seven players to record at least one point thus far, three hailed from the dependable blue line corps of France. Leana Galibert, Domitille Ratto and Naïs Vala Viaux all collected assists. Adding to the team’s scoring depth are Maëlie Moussier and Gabrielle Roussel. Both forwards are tied for the team lead in points with two apiece.
The North American Prospects were down 2-1 in the second period to the Finland Selects and needed a big play to even the score. Just over three minutes after Finland’s second goal, Jaiden Krushelniski found the back of the net to tie the game. That pushed the game to overtime, where Krushelniski would again beat goaltender Peppi Kontio for her second goal of the game. That secured the victory for North American Prospects.
In the team’s second game against Swiss Selects, Krushelniski kicked off the scoring with a power-play goal in the first period. She would add her fourth of the tournament with an insurance goal in the second period to complete a 3-0 shutout win. One of the best goal scorers so far, it will be interesting to see how long Krushelniski can continue her torrid scoring rate.
World Hockey Hub will have continued coverage of the Girls U14 World Selects Invitational! Follow WHH on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord and YouTube for the latest news, updates and more!