CHL notebook: Blues prospect Dvorsky producing on big stage at WJC

Future NHL stars are developing in the Canadian Hockey League this season. Each week, NHL.com will highlight a few of the top NHL-affiliated prospects in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League and the Western Hockey League.

The Arizona Coyotes, Buffalo Sabres and St. Louis Blues each have an NHL-best seven players taking part in the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, several of whom are there after thriving in the CHL.

Among them is Dalibor Dvorsky, the Blues forward prospect who has spent most of the season with Sudbury of the OHL.

Dvorsky began 2023-24 with Oskarshamm of the Swedish Hockey League, but after 10 games with limited ice time, Dvorsky and the Blues decided a change was needed, and Sudbury has proven to be the perfect option. The 18-year-old, selected by St. Louis with the No. 10 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, has 34 points (18 goals, 16 assists) in 20 OHL games, including 12 points (eight goals, four assists) during a five-game point streak before leaving to play for Slovakia at the WJC, where he has four points (two goals, two assists) in three games.

"It's tough for an 18-year-old kid to walk into a pro lineup and expectations are for him to contribute as a top six [forward]," Blues director of player personnel Tim Taylor said. "Just a different dynamics of a young boy, just turned 18 and going into a men's league. ... His expectations were to put points on the board real early and it didn't happen and it's just a real tough league and dynamic for a young, 18-year-old boy to walk into.

"We're really happy to get him back into Sudbury, back to really where his peers are playing, all the 18-year-old kids were drafted, come out of the Canadian Hockey League and where he could be a kid, be a young teenager, and be able to grow and learn and still play the game and still have some fun with it. It's a better all-around situation for him."

Two Coyotes prospects left their CHL teams to play key roles for Canada: center Conor Geekie and defenseman Maveric Lamoureux. Geekie, the No. 11 pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, has three points (two goals, one assist) in three games playing on Canada's top line. Lamoureux, the No. 29 pick in the 2022 draft, has three points (one goal, two assists) and is averaging 24:06 of ice time in three games.

Geekie was leading Wenatchee of the WHL in goals (20) and points (49) in 26 games before the 19-year-old left for the World Juniors.

"He's a big guy (6-foot-3, 193 pounds) on a team that doesn't have a lot of size," Coyotes director of player development Lee Stempniak said. "He's a guy that when you look at him, he can play a two-way game, he can match up against skilled players, and he can provide offense. So my hope for him is that he grabs one of those opportunities on Canada and just doesn't let go of it. Plays that way and is a guy that they rely on."

Lamoureux (6-6, 196) also has used his size well in the offensive and defensive zones at the WJC and with Drummondville of the QMJHL, where the 19-year-old has 27 points (seven goals, 20 assists) in 25 games.

"You watch him, and our analytics support it, he just kills plays," Stempniak said. "He uses his size, uses his reach to end plays and kill rushes early. Individually it looks like he's dominant defensively. When you watch and when he's on the ice, his team doesn't spend much time in the [defensive] zone. ... The other stuff, with the puck and the offense ... he's moving pucks a lot better. He's just more fluid with the puck now."

Canada also has relied on Matt Savoie, Geekie's Wenatchee teammate, who was selected by the Sabres with the No. 9 pick of the 2022 draft. The forward, who will turn 20 on New Year's Day, has one assist in three games at the WJC, and his average of 2.18 points in 11 WHL games (24 points; 11 goals, 13 assists) leads the league.

"It's not surprising how well he's producing, how well he's playing," Sabres director of player development Adam Mair said. "He's driving plays, playing with pace, and that's something that we challenged him with when he went back to Wenatchee, just to keep the speed that he plays at at a high level, and he's done that."

Buffalo has two other CHL prospects in the tournament: Canada's third goalie, Scott Ratzlaff, who plays for Seattle in the WHL; and Germany defenseman Norwin Panocha, who has averaged 17:41 of ice time in two WJC games and has 11 assists in 30 games for Chicoutimi of the QMJHL.

OTHERS TO WATCH

Jacob Julien, LW, London: The Winnipeg Jets prospect has emerged as a key part of London's offense with 39 points (14 goals, 25 assists) in 34 games. He had 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in seven games before the holiday break, including his first OHL hat trick Dec. 15 against Owen Sound. The 19-year-old was selected by the Jets in the fifth round (No. 146) of the 2023 NHL Draft.

Cam Squires, RW, Cape Breton: The New Jersey Devils prospect returned from the holiday break against Saint John on Thursday with a goal and two assists to extend his point streak to eight games (12 points; seven goals, five assists). The 18-year-old, selected by the Devils in the fourth round (No. 122) of the 2023 draft, leads Cape Breton with 18 goals and is tied for first with 34 points in 33 games.

Andrew Cristall, RW, Kelowna: Cristall had two assists against Kamloops on Friday to extend his point streak to 15 games (27 points; eight goals, 19 assists), the longest active streak in the WHL. The 18-year-old Washington Capitals prospect, selected in the second round (No. 40) of the 2023 draft, leads Kelowna with 55 points (18 goals, 37 assists) in 28 games and is sixth in scoring in the WHL.