Czech World Juniors evaluation

The 2014 World Junior Hockey Championship is over and it was a strange one for Team Czech Republic. After beating Canada in overtime of a group stage game, they fell to Germany, but a win over Slovakia helped them reach the quarterfinals anyways. There, however, Finland would come from behind to advance and eliminate Czechs and would eventually get to the finals.

The Czech team hasn't exceeded expectations, but has met its goals as it has reached quarterfinals. Restoring Czech junior hockey is a lengthy process and nobody would think it would be finished by now. Let's take a look at what names might be seen in the roster at the next U20 WJC in Canada.

Goaltenders

It's been a rule that the Czech team always brings in three goaltenders that are not underage and thus it's their final opportunity to participate at the tournament. Out of all 1995-born netminders, the most interesting one, at least statistically, might be Miroslav Svoboda, who leads his class in the Czech Under-20 Extraliga in save percentage.

There are only two more starters in the league that were born in 1995 and René Svoboda is another one, leading the class in GAA while Jindřich Pacl has most assists. There are also two 1996-born goalies in the league with high hopes – Vítek Vaněček and Karel Vejmelka – but it looks more likely that coach Miroslav Přerost will go with the more experienced trio.

Defensemen

In Malmö, the Czech team had two blueliners that are eligible to return next year. Jan Košťálek who plays with Rimouski of the QMJHL and has been drafted by Winnipeg is the biggest of these names and he should lead the team's defensive corps next year. The other one is David Němeček, another CHL-based D-man who is a physical presence on the ice. 

Who didn't make the cut this year, likely due to injuries, was Jan Štencel for whom it would be his second WJC as he took part in the 2013 championship in Ufa, Russia. Štencel is an Extraliga regular and he shouldn't miss next year. There's one more 1995-born defenseman playing in the CHL at the moment and it's Tomáš Andrlík whom some scouts have considered a pleasant surprise early this season. Andrlík looks like a good two-way defenseman and he is also likely to make the team next year.

If there is a spot for a 1996-born blueliner in the roster for the next year, Filip Pyrochta might be the one who will get it. He's been a leader for the U18 national team this year including their bronze-medal run at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup. That doesn't warrant a spot at the World Juniors, but being a regular among pros could. The same applies to his teammate Tomáš Havlín who's been the biggest riser of the 2014 Czech draft class.

Forwards

Plenty of forwards from this year's roster will return next year in Canada and the biggest stars with the exception of Radek Faksa are on that list. Yes, we're talking Swedish-based first-round prospects Jakub Vrána and David Pastrňák, teammates from Chomutov with undeniable chemistry Ondřej Kaše and David Kämpf and also a 2015-draft prospect Pavel Zacha.

Also returning could be flashy QMJHL winger Patrik Zdráhal who almost failed to make the cut this time, but proved his worth in Malmö. He could be joined by fellow QMJHLers Jan Mandát from Victoriaville and Gatineau's Václav Karabáček who also happens to be the top CHL-based Czech prospect for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.

The list could also be joined by two OHLers Dominik Kubalík who is a Los Angeles Kings prospect and David Tomášek who is also hoping to get drafted after this season. Three more offensive candidates have been cruising all over Extraliga rinks this year. It's Miroslav Indrák from Pilsen, Marek Růžička from Třinec and Pavel Jenyš, a 1996-born from Brno. All these have chances on making the team next December.

It will be interesting to see who makes the cut and who joins the list of candidates as this season progresses and the next one begins. There were some choices this year that probably weren't expected in summer including Zacha or Patrik Marcel. Overall, the Czechs are expecting a better tournament next year with stars like Vrána, Pastrňák and Zacha getting more and more experienced.

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