B's Will Be Well Represented at World Juniors

BostonBruins.com- The Bruins will be well represented when this year's IIHF World Junior Championship opens up this week, with six prospects competing in the tournament.
Trent Frederic, Ryan Lindgren, and Jeremy Swayman will play for Team USA's final roster; Urho Vaakanainen, last June's first-round pick, and Joona Koppanen will suit up for Finland; and Oskar Steen will compete for Sweden.

"Give credit to the scouting staff, they're identifying the right players," said Bruins Player Development Coordinator Jamie Langenbrunner. "We have a lot of pride for the effort that [the players are] putting in, the positions they're putting themselves in to have those opportunities to have those experiences going forward.
"You definitely remember those chances to represent your country. It's great for the organization and all of us to see that."
The 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship will be held from Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Buffalo.
Here's a closer look at what the prospects have been up to:

TEAM USA

Trent Frederic, F | University of Wisconsin
Frederic was drafted by the Bruins with the 29th overall pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. The St. Louis native is a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin, where he has notched 16 points (8 goals, 8 assists) in 19 games, which is tied for the team lead with Ryan Wagner.
"It's a great opportunity for him to gauge himself in that next group here," said Langenbrunner. "He looks to be in a spot now that he can be a contributor on that team."
A 6-foot-2, 203-pound center, Frederic is no stranger to representing his country, having earned a bronze medal with Team USA at the 2016 IIHF U-18 Men's World Championship.

Ryan Lindgren, D | University of Minnesota
Like Frederic, Lindgren is a member of Boston's 2016 draft class. The Minneapolis native was taken in the second round (49th overall) and is a sophomore at the University of Minnesota. The 19-year-old shutdown defenseman has 2 goals and 2 assists in 18 games this season for the Gophers.
Lindgren, who will be an assistant captain for the tournament, won gold with Team USA at last year's IIHF World Junior Championship in Canada. The blueliner was part of a strong back end that included Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy.
"Ryan was a key part of that gold-medal winning team," said Langenbrunner. "With Ryan, you look at the stats sheet and you're like, 'What's going on?' He doesn't put up a whole lot of numbers, but you go and watch him day in and day out and you see how valuable he is to teams and why teams he's on are successful.
"He's going to be a leader on that team...he's a guy that does all of the little things and the dirty things well and is going to be an important player for them."

Jeremy Swayman, G | University of Maine
Swayman, an Anchorage, Alaska, native, is still a relative newcomer to the organization, having been drafted by the B's in the fourth round (111th overall) of this past June's draft. The 19-year-old netminder is a freshman at the University of Maine and is 5-3-1 with a 2.38 goals against average and. 925 save percentage in 10 games.
"It's a great opportunity for him, it's a credit to the year he's having," said Langenbrunner. "I don't believe he's really been at any of the big tournaments before, so this is definitely an opportunity to see him at another level.
"Whether or not he plays is to be determined, but it's just the experience and being around that, seeing how much further he wants to keep pushing his game."

TEAM FINLAND

Urho Vaakanainen, D | SaiPa Lappeenranta
The smooth-skating blueliner does not have eye-popping offensive numbers for SaiPa Lappeenranta of the Finnish Elite League this season, but he is playing a solid brand of hockey with three assists in 20 games.
"He's one of, if not the leader in ice time for defensemen in the Finnish Elite League as an 18-year-old kid, and continues to impress with his consistency and the professional nature in which he plays," said Langenbrunner.

Joona Koppanen, F | Ilves Tampere
The 2016 fifth-round pick has notched eight assists without a goal in 22 games for Ilves Tampere of the Finnish Elite League this season. Langenbrunner complimented the 19-year-old's penalty-killing and skating game.
"Reliable player. I don't want to stereotype the Finns, but they all seem to have a lot of really good details in their game where they understand how to play the game defensively," Langenbrunner said of the 6-foot-4, 192-pound winger.
"He's going to continue to grow into his game. He's still lanky and a little skinny but he understands the game very well. If he keeps on improving, hopefully he will be a part of that team because I think it will be a great experience for him."

TEAM SWEDEN

Oskar Steen, F | Farjestads BK Karlstad
Steen, 19, was selected in the sixth round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. The 5-foot-9, 188-pound forward, who has two goals and two assists in 25 games for Fajestads BK Karlstad this season, had a strong showing throughout the summer.
"He was very impressive in [Development] Camp. Fortunately for us, we also had him over for Rookie Camp in September and got to see him a little longer," said Langenbrunner. "It gave him a little bit of an awakening of what is yet to come and how much further he needs to go.
"He's continuing to try to develop more of his scoring…was really good in Plymouth, [Michigan] during the [World Junior] Summer Showcase, had a hat trick in one game and has shown a little bit of the scoring that we think is in there."