Rangers forward, Radek Faksa, has impressed scouts across the country in a season where he has been scoring at a point per game pace.

Despite his terrific play, the Czech forward wasn’t expecting to show up at the top of the draft ranking but he knows what he has to do to not disappoint the rest of the way.

“It was a big surprise right away so I’m very happy but its just half of the season … I must always work hard,” Faksa said. “It’s hard because I’m tired from of playing a lot of games.  I didn’t play a lot of games [last season] so it’s different now. I hope I have good conditioning.”

All the same, Faksa’s success to this point has not gone unnoticed by Rangers’ Head Coach and General Manager, Steve Spott.

“I think Radek Faksa’s one of the smartest player’s we’ve had in the organization for a long time,” said Spott.  “He’s big, he’s strong and he plays the game hard.”

Coach Spott went on to express his belief that Faksa has a bright future ahead of him.

“He has all the NHL intangibles; he trains extremely hard off the ice, he works on his game in practice and ultimately, his hockey sense it as a world class level,” he said.  “He has the chance to be a great NHL second-line centre man.”

Nevertheless, just like any young player, Faksa has much to work on to prepare to play at the level of the National Hockey League.

“He’s gotta stay in the weight room, he has to continue to physically develop,” continued Spott.  “He’s a tall kid but he still has room to grow.  It’s a matter of working on your skating like all players do and then obviously getting stronger in the weight room.”

Having played at the World Junior Championship in Alberta last month, Faksa now has some familiarity with playing in a high-pressure game.

“It was a very good experience because I was young and it was in Canada so there were a lot of people … it was a very big experience for me,” said Faksa.

Despite ending the tournament without a medal, the experience gained from the competition will prove to be invaluable when it comes time to fighting for a position with an NHL hockey club next year.

The 19-year-old Red Wings prospect stood on his head for the Czech Republic and was nothing short of a crowd pleaser for the Canadian fans between Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta.

“He kept us in all tournament,” commented fellow teammate and current Kitchener Ranger Radek Faksa. “He’s an amazing goalie.”

Voted “Best Goaltender” by a majority of over 475 media members, Mrazek’s play was in refute to the Czech Hockey Federation, who had previously banned him from the tournament. Mrazek opted to leave his home country – and his final year on a hockey contract – to play with the Ottawa 67’s in the Ontario Hockey League. Czech management was less than pleased with his decision to neglect the contract and consequently banned him from international play.

In his third season with the 67’s, among the league leaders in just about every statistical category for goaltenders – goals-against-average, save percentage, wins, shutouts and saves – the Czechs buried their feud, realizing just how much of an asset Mrazek would be to their team.

Aside from his 2.44 goals-against-average and .928 save percentage through six games at the WJC, it was Mrazek’s eccentric celebrations that endeared him to fans.

In a preliminary match-up against Team Canada, he denied Canadian sniper Mark Stone and showed his enthusiasm with a knee-drop fist pump – typically not seen from goalies. In a 5-2 upset knocking Team USA out of medal contention, he celebrated, jumped in team pile-ups and saluted the crowd in what he cited as his best performance ever between the pipes.

“It’s an unreal feeling,” said Mrazek who played out his final year of WJC eligibility. “To have the crowd stand up and to chant your name.”

The Czechs eventually succumbed in a quarterfinal loss to Team Russia, the defending gold medalists.

“No one expected this from us at the start of the tournament,” said Mrazek following the game. “I was happy with our team, but we had a chance to play in the semifinal for a medal and we lost so we can’t talk about it.”

The Czech’s went on to a fifth place finish, defeating Slovakia in the relegation round.

“It’s difficult, but it’s just hockey. You have to take it and learn from it.”

At least that’s not the reputation Tomas himself would like to have anymore.

“I want to be known as a good hockey player, not just the guy with the stick and puck.”

The Kosice, Slovakia native became an instant You Tube sensation after an awe-inspiring video of his stick handling skills went viral.

“I was just a kid playing around,” said Jurco. “I was only 13 or 14, I never thought it was going to be so popular.”

Jurco insists those days are behind him now. That’s not to say however, that the crafty winger has done any less of a job helping the puck find the back of the net in his third season in the QMJHL.

The stick work and puck movement of this 2010-11 Memorial Cup champion is hard to miss and at 6-foot-2, 193 pounds, Jurco is just as much of a physical presence as a goal scorer.

With the Saint John Seas Dogs this season, Jurco has put up 45 points (21 goals, 24 assists) and is plus-28 in 30 games.

His fancy dangles also helped him edge first overall draft pick Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in the Showdown Breakaway Challenge at the 2011 CHL/NHL Top Prospects competition.

The Red Wings prospect suited up for Team Slovakia at the Under-20 World Junior Championships over the holidays, where he put up eight points (one goal, seven assists) in five games. The Slovaks went on to a sixth place finish.

“I’m really happy with my team,” said Jurco. “I think we played good and I think we made a lot of people happy back home and that’s what we came for.”

Being in his second Under-20 tournament, on a team comprised primarily of players playing outside of North America, Jurco took on more of a leadership role. His experience playing with the likes of Team Canada’s Jonathan Huberdeau and Nathan Beaulieu in Saint John helped him fulfill that duty.

“I’m just trying to help guys and give them my advice,” he said. “I’ve played in a lot of big games in Saint John and I try to bring the experience that I have and get the guys pumped.”

A link to the video interview can be found here.

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Tieja is a regular contributor to OpenIceHockey and can be found on Twitter @tieja_mac

31 years to be exact.

In fact, head coach Roger Rönnberg was only 10-years-old the last time he witnessed his country win a gold medal at the IIHF Under-20 World Junior Championship.

This year, a lesser known, but always skilled Swedish squad worked their way to a perfect 4-0 record in round robin play before squaring off against some hefty opponents in the medal rounds.

Digging themselves out of a 3-0 deficit against the Russians in their final preliminary match proved to be one of their biggest feats. With 40 seconds remaining in the game, Anaheim Ducks prospect Max Friberg tied the score to force extra play. Friberg went on to assist Joakim Nordström’s game winner in a 4-3 final.

The overtime determinant marked the first of three for the Swedes en route to capturing gold. The team’s semifinal against Finland was determined in a shootout and the final championship game against Russia also went to overtime.

In that final game, shots favoured Sweden 50-16 after 60 minutes of regulation. Ottawa Senators prospect Mika Zibanejad was the eventual hero, scoring the “golden goal” for his country.

The scene across the pond in Stockholm was one of pride and exuberance for a country that had waited so patiently for its turn in the international hockey spotlight.

Friberg finished the tournament with 11 points in six games and was named to the tournament all-star team, along with teammate and defenseman Oscar Klefbom.

The victory has since been called the greatest hockey accomplishment for Sweden in the past century.

Captain Jaden Schwartz talked about the historical rivalry between the two nations and the skillful play of the Russians.

Quinton Howden, Brandon Gormley, Freddie Hamilton, Jonathan Huberdeau and Mark Stone also commented.

Brandon Wheat Kings’ Mark Stone busted onto the scene to become Canada’s top scorer. He is tied for the tournament lead in goals scored (7) and is ranked among the top players in scoring – nine points in four games played.

For Russia, Nikita Gusev leads his team, also with nine points. Sarnia Sting’s 2012 draft eligible forward, Nail Yakupov, has tallied five points as well.

The winner of the Canada versus Russia game will advance to the gold medal game against Sweden, who defeated Finland in their semifinal game earlier this afternoon.

The video preview for the 2012 WJC Semi-final can be found here

That his defenceman, Artem Sergeev, is a solid two-way defenceman.

“He came into camp this season much stronger,” Dumont said. “He trained all summer to get bigger and stronger, and he came in a lot more confident in his game.”

The end result?

“Last season, he got caught in the mix a little bit, and had a tough time adapting,” he said. “This year has been night-and-day. He’s getting a lot of minutes in all situations.

“He’s been solid and tough for us so far.”

Sergeev has attributed his growth on the ice to one thing:

“I’ve been getting more ice time,” he said.

“I’m more confident this year. I feel better with and without the puck. I got stronger and worked hard to get here now.”

Sergeev has stepped his game up a notch this season, his second with the Foreurs. Last season, he managed five goals and 27 points in 64 games. This season so far, he has 19 points in 33 games, including seven goals. His confidence has allowed him to let loose his pulsating shot from the point.

“Offensively, he’s one of the guys back there that we rely on,” coach Dumont said. “He has been able to use his shot better and make better decisions with the puck as the season has gone on.”

Sergeev, or Artyom Sergeyev, will be suiting up for Russia in the World Junior Hockey Championships this holiday season. He was pointless in two exhibition games for the Russians thus far.

He will be relied on as more of a steady rearguard on the world stage, providing stability and a good first pass from the back end. As well, his experience in North America on the small ice will be an asset for the Russians, where any edge in a short tournament can come in handy.

Sergeev not only had a big summer in the weight room. He also spent time in camp with the Detroit Red Wings. He said that the camp allowed him to grow more as a player, not just stronger.

“It was pretty cool,” he said. “I felt I did well. It was a good experience to go to camp with the Wings. I was able to train with all their coaches and the players. It helped me a lot. It showed me what the next level is like and what I have to do to get there.”

For Sergeev, he feels that he needs to keep going and keep growing to make it to the next level.

“In the pros, they are so fast and so competitive,” he said. “I have to work harder and keep making progress. If I do that, I can give myself a chance to compete there.”

A good showing at the World Juniors can’t hurt either.

But the Finnish goaltender is turning heads at the QMJHL level.

Gibson, a second-round pick of the Los Angeles Kings, is among the next group of talented Finnish netminders. Along the way, though, he separated from the pack and decided to come to Canada at the age of 15.

“I wanted to get used to the North American style of play,” Gibson said. “So I thought about it, and decided that Canada was the best option. I enrolled with the Notre Dame Hounds [at Athol Murray School in Sasketchewan], and was able to get a great start on building experience here.”

Gibson’s father is English and a Black Belt martial artist. His mother was a Finnish aux pere. They met in London and moved to Finland, where Christopher was born. Gibson played hockey from a young age, but got hooked with the idea of playing in Canada after playing in a tournament in Quebec. A Finnish coach recommended Notre Dame, and after a visit, parents and son were hooked.

“It was a great experience,” Gibson said. “I was able to play on the Midget AAA team there, and we won the TELUS Cup that season. It was a great year overall for me. I was able to adjust to the style and the play in Canada and also win.”

Gibson was then drafted by the Chicoutimi Sagueneens in the first round of the 2009 QMJHL Entry Draft. He never looked back, making the Sagueneens in his first year, and after some growing pains, managed to carve his way into the top goaltending prospects of the league.

“To be able to play major junior in Canada is an amazing experience,” he said. “It has treated me well so far.”

So far this season, Gibson is 13-9-3 with a trying Sagueneens squad in a tough division. He has a GAA of 3.08 and a save percentage of .889.

Last season, his numbers sparkled, with a GAA of 2.42 and a save percentage of .920, despite a less-than-stellar 14-15-8 record.

Gibson was drafted by the Kings in the second round of last year’s entry draft. He said that he enjoyed his time at his first full camp in the NHL.

“It was a bit of a tough go but it was a great time,” he said. “I was able to learn a lot and be able to take what I learned and apply it to my game.”

Gibson is clearly Finnish in one aspect; like many Finns, he looks up to fellow Finnish netminder Miikka Kiprusoff.

“I don’t have a style I try to emulate, but I do look up to him and try to follow him a bit,” Gibson admitted. “I don’t try to emulate any goaltender, but I do root for him, like most Finnish goalies.”

Chicoutimi head coach Marc-Etienne Hubert said that Gibson is a great number one goaltender in the QMJHL.

“He plays the puck really well,” he said. “He moves well and is able to play big in the net.”

Gibson said that he has some aspects of his game to work on in his young career.

“I want to look into reading the play a lot more,” he said. “As you go higher and higher and into the pro leagues, reading the play and being able to anticipate is that much more important. I’ve been working on that, and I want to keep progressing with it.”

“I want to work on my consistency as well,” he added. “I want to work on being the best goalie I can, night-in and night-out.”

Gibson’s personal goal this season is already met; he wanted to play for his country in the World Junior Championships this holiday season in Alberta. He was named to the team, and will suit up for Team Finland.

Will his experience in North America provide an edge for the Finns?

“It couldn’t hurt,” he said with a smile. “I have a desire to win. I want to go as far as possible. My experience on the North American ice can only help me.”

“I know I won’t be a star right away [in the pro game],” he said. “I just want to be a strong two-way defenceman, concentrate on my game and worry about gaining the trust of the coaches first.”

Trust he has. Abeltshauser is the number one defenceman for the Halifax Mooseheads. He plays in all situations for the young squad.

“He’s playing powerplay and killing penalties, and playing great for us,” Halifax head coach Dominique Ducharme said. “He brings a lot of offence, but also he brings a great first pass to set up our forwards well. His transition game is excellent.”

Abeltshauser serves as a leader on a team that features several top NHL prospects, including Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Frk, Jonathan Drouin, Ryan Falkenham, Zachary Fucale and Andrew Ryan.

He is excited about playing with such young talent and sharing his experience with the Mooseheads prospects.

“We’re looking for a little more success this year,” he said. “We have a group of good young players on the team. They’re going to learn a lot and we’re here to help as much as possible.”

“We’ve had a rough couple of years now, but this year we want to win as much as we can.”

Abeltshauser is a San Jose draft pick, picked in the sixth round of the 2010 draft. The German is helped by a lack of depth at the national level, dressing in his third World Junior Championship this year. He helped Germany reach the top division for last year’s tournament.

This year, he and his team won the Division 1 tournament, ensuring Germany a second date at the World Juniors tournament next season.

He led the tournament in assists with six, and was a +9. He finished with seven points overall.

Back in the QMJHL, the three year veteran has 22 points in 25 games patrolling the blue line for the Mooseheads. His career-high came last year, with 27 points in 58 games.

“This year, I’m looking more at using my size,” said the 6’5” rearguard. “I look to join the rush and to make good passes, but I want to work a little more on my defensive game.”

“It’s always fun to play offensively,” he continued. “Scoring goals is fun, but I want to prevent some more as well. I want to focus more on reading the play and playing better defensively.”

Ducharme said that his defensive game has seen improvement this year.

“He’s using his size a bit more,” he said. “He’s improved his stick [checking] a lot. He’s taking up a lot of time and space using it and it’s working for him. He’s using his body well, but he’s also learning that he doesn’t always have to use his body to get the job done.”

Ducharme does caution however that  Abeltshauser’s got plenty to learn before being considered an elite defenseman in the Q.

“He still has room for improvement but he’s taking the steps to get there and become a two-way defenceman.”

The 6-foot, 170-pound forward opted to make the move from his hometown Swiss Elite League, to the coveted OHL for the start of the 2011-12 season.

“I felt that in Switzerland we weren’t getting much exposure outside of the national team,” said Richard.  “I figured that if I came over here and played good hockey, I’d have a better chance at being drafted.”

Richard was first spotted at the 2010 U-18 tournament, despite Switzerland’s seventh place finish. The crafty scorer caught the eye of Canadian scouts and went on to be selected 28th overall by the Guelph Storm in the 2011 CHL Import Draft.

Perhaps to his advantage, was his father’s familiar hockey name to the members of the Storm. In the mid-80’s Tanner’s father, Mike Richard, played for the old Toronto Marlboros in Guelph, prior to their relocation. Mike went on to skate three pro seasons in North America, before finishing his 20-plus year career in Europe.

As a result Tanner has duel citizenship and a familiarity with North American culture that has made his transition to the OHL quite smooth. He is currently leading his team with 43 points (10 goals, 24 assists) through 30 games. He also has 36 penalty minutes.

Richard now has one of his biggest opportunities to impress NHL scouts – at the Under-20 World Junior Championships. His Swiss counterparts have already begun camp, but Richard will wait to leave his club team and meet the national team on December 17th.

“I’ve been following the world juniors for as long as I can remember,” said Richard, who hadn’t played on an international stage until this past year. “I started out as the 13th forward for Switzerland and just worked my way up.”

Tanner went on to lead the Swiss national team with five points in six games at the U-18 tournament; he was also named player of the game on two occasions.

“I think I had a good showing at the U-18’s and I had a pretty strong showing at the U-20 camp and Four Nations tournament,” said Richard. “I earned myself a spot up front in a more offensive role.”

Tanner played his final game for the Storm last Friday in London against the number one nationally ranked Knights. He will then take off to Calgary to meet up with his Swiss teammates in preparation for the beginning of the tournament.

“He had a real good game tonight,” commented Storm head coach Scott Walker following the loss. “He really took charge of playing and playing hard. He’ll be a real good player for Team Switzerland.”

Switzerland will play in the tournament’s Group A pool with Latvia, Slovakia, Russia and Sweden. Their first tilt is set for December 26th against the defending gold medalists, Team Russia.

CALGARY, Alta. – Hockey Canada, in partnership with the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), announced Thursday the 22 players that will make up Canada’s National Junior Team at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship.

The announcement comes at the conclusion of Canada’s National Junior Team Sport Chek Selection Camp, which ran from Dec. 10-14, 2011 at the WinSport Canada Athletic & Ice Complex in Calgary. A total of 43 players attended camp.

Four members of this year’s roster – Brett Connolly (Prince George, B.C./Tampa Bay, NHL), Quinton Howden (Oak Bank, Man./Moose Jaw, WHL), Jaden Schwartz (Wilcox, Sask./Colorado College, CCHA) and Mark Visentin (Waterdown, Ont./Niagara, OHL) – helped Canada earn the silver medal at the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championship in Buffalo, N.Y.

CHL Players on Team Canada:

Goaltenders:

Mark Visentin (Niagara IceDogs)

Scott Wedgewood (Plymouth Whalers)

Defencemen:

Nathan Beaulieu (Saint John Sea Dogs)

Brandon Gormley (Moncton Wildcats)

Dougie Hamilton (Niagara IceDogs)

Scott Harrington (London Knights)

Ryan Murray (Everett Silvertips)

Jamie Oleksiak (Saginaw Spirit)

Mark Pysyk (Edmonton Oil Kings)

Forwards:

Michael Bournival (Shawinigan Cataractes)

Brendan Gallagher (Vancouver Giants)

Freddie Hamilton (Niagara IceDogs)

Quinton Howden (Moose Jaw Warriors)

Jonathan Huberdeau (Saint John Sea Dogs)

Boone Jenner (Oshawa Generals)

Tanner Pearson (Barrie Colts)

Mark Scheifele (Barrie Colts)

Mark Stone (Brandon Wheat Kings)

Ryan Strome (Niagara IceDogs)

In addition to the 19 CHL players listed above, current NHL players Brett Connolly (Tampa Bay Lightning/Prince George Cougars), and Devante Smith-Pelly (Anaheim Ducks/Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors) are graduates of the CHL.

CLICK HERE FOR CANADA’S NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM ROSTER

“On behalf of Hockey Canada, I want to congratulate the players named to the final roster today, along with their club teams, parents and minor hockey coaches that have helped them reach this level,” said Brad Pascall, Hockey Canada’s vice-president of hockey operations/national teams. “Canada is lucky to have many great young players, and these players should be very proud of their achievement today.”

CLICK HERE FOR CANADA’S PRE-COMPETITION AND WORLD JUNIOR GAME SCHEDULE