Detroit Red Wings: 7 prospects named to World Junior rosters

The Detroit Red Wings have seven prospects named to World Junior Championship rosters for their respective countries.

As the Detroit Red Wings await concrete plans for a 2020-21 season, the upcoming 2021 World Junior Championships are next on the docket in the hockey world. There will be seven prospects participating amongst the various teams for the Red Wings and its fan base to watch.

On Christmas Day, things will get kicked off for the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship; ten teams will be sending teams to Edmonton. They will hold a bubble to try and successfully complete this tournament in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Seven Red Wings prospects are traveling to Edmonton, with their respective teams, to take part in this tournament, just a year after Team Canada captured a victory sending a few Red Wings prospects home with gold medals.

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This year, Team Canada will be another favorite to keep an eye on, but they will be without Alexis Lafrenière, who was not cleared to participate by the New York Rangers.

For the Red Wings, it is a Swedish-heavy class of prospects who are participating. Here’s a look at the Red Wings prospects who made the cut!

• Team Czech Republic: Jan Bednar (G)
• Team Finland: Eemil Viro (D)
• Team Sweden: Albert Johansson (D), Elmer Soderblom (F), Gustav Berglund (D), Lucas Raymond (F), Theodor Neiderbach (F)

Four of these seven prospects are the product of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, where Steve Yzerman made the most of every opportunity, stretching the draft class from seven to 12 total picks. Nonetheless, a successful tournament by the Swedish team bodes well for the hefty crop of Swedish prospects the organization has participating.

Not to mention most of these players are all working on their development overseas alongside some of the Red Wings other prospects like Joe Veleno and Moritz Seider who played in the 2020 World Junior Championship.

This year’s tournament begins on Christmas Day when Team Switzerland and Team Slovakia open up the tournament. Unlike the usual Boxing Day tradition to kick things off, Team U.S.A and Team Canada will not face-off on the first day. Instead, Team U.S.A and Team Russia will play on Christmas Day.

Red Wings fans with a vested interest in the future of this organization can tune in to watch these seven prospects play during the 2021 World Junior Championship. Those interested should keep an eye on Lucas Raymond to see what he can do, being that he was the fourth overall selection this past year.

For fans looking forward to the 2020-21 season, tuning into the 2021 World Junior Championship offers a chance to see some of the Detroit Red Wings’ future talents on display.