2018 World Junior Championship Group B preview

The most-watched player at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship could be Sweden defenseman Rasmus Dahlin.
Dahlin, 17, is projected to be the first player selected at the 2018 NHL Draft.

"I watched him play in the [2017] World Juniors and watched him play a couple [Swedish Hockey League] games in the [2017] playoffs," said a scout from an Eastern Conference team. "He played a lot of minutes with the men in the elite league and I was really impressed with his poise and his composure. He skated well and moved the puck and had skill. The composure that he showed as a 16-year-old against men in the top league was phenomenal."
Dahlin had two points (one goal, one assist) in 10:25 of ice time at the 2017 WJC. Expect all those numbers to go up this year.

"He showed us last year it's not an age factor," Sweden coach Tomas Monten said. "We're going to go with the best players, doesn't matter if they're young or old. We're just looking for the players that can make our team better. For sure he's one of them."
Sweden will be the favorite to win Group B, which includes Belarus, Czech Republic, Russia and Switzerland. The tournament begins Tuesday and runs through Jan. 5, 2018, at KeyBank Center and HarborCenter in Buffalo.
Here's a look at each Group B team, in predicted order of finish:

Sweden

Coach -- Tomas Monten
2018 NHL Draft watch -- Rasmus Dahlin, D, Frolunda, SWE; Isac Lundestrom, C, Lulea, SWE
Schedule -- Dec. 26, Belarus (2 p.m. ET; RDS); Dec. 28, Czech Republic (4 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS); Dec. 30, Switzerland (2 p.m. ET; TSN5, RDS); Dec. 31, Russia (8 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS2)
Outlook -- Scoring goals should be no problem for Sweden, especially with the addition of Alexander Nylander, who was released for the tournament by the Buffalo Sabres on Dec. 20. Nylander, who led Sweden in scoring with 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in seven games at last year's tournament, has six points (two goals, four assists) in 15 games with Rochester in the American Hockey League. Lias Andersson (New York Rangers) who had three goals in seven games last year, will be a key contributor, as will Elias Pettersson (Vancouver Canucks), who is tied for the Swedish Hockey League lead with 35 points (11 goals, 24 assists) in 26 games with Vaxjo. Joining Dahlin on will be 2017 first-round picks Erik Brannstrom (Vegas Golden Knights) and Timothy Liljegren (Toronto Maple Leafs). Sweden's offensive firepower makes it the team to beat in Group B and a gold-medal contender.

Russia

Coach -- Valeri Bragin
2018 NHL Draft watch -- Andrei Svechnikov, RW, Barrie, OHL
Schedule -- Dec. 26, Czech Republic (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS); Dec. 28, Switzerland (2 p.m. ET, TSN3, TSN5, RDS2); Dec. 29, Belarus (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN3, RDS); Dec. 31: Sweden (8 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS2)
Outlook -- Russia should have no problems scoring with an offense led by German Rubtsov (Philadelphia Flyers) and Vitaly Abramov (Columbus Blue Jackets). Abramov returns from last year's bronze medal-winning team. He didn't have a point in five games and missed the final two after being hit in the face with a stick, but since leaving Russia to play in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League after last year's tournament he has 47 points (17 goals, 30 assists) in 41 games. Abramov, who led the QMJHL in scoring last season, is among the league leaders this season with 45 points (17 goals, 28 assists) in 29 games. Another player to watch is Svechnikov, who has 14 goals in 16 Ontario Hockey League games but is working his way back into shape after missing two months because of a hand injury.

Czech Republic

Coach -- Filip Pesan
2018 NHL Draft watch -- Filip Zadina, RW, Halifax, QMJHL; Martin Kaut, RW, Pardubice, CZREP; Krystof Hrabik, C, Liberec, CZREP
Schedule -- Dec. 26, Russia (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS); Dec. 28, Sweden (4 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS); Dec. 30, Belarus (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS); Dec. 31, Switzerland (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS2)
Outlook -- The Czech Republic will be a medal contender in Buffalo after finishing sixth last year. The top line could feature center Martin Necas (Carolina Hurricanes) and right wing Ostap Safin (Edmonton Oilers). Necas, the No. 12 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, started the season with the Hurricanes but was returned after one game to his Czech team, Brno, where he has five points (three goals, two assists) in 12 games. Safin, a 6-foot-5, 192-pound forward, has 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists) in 33 games with Saint John of the QMJHL. Their top forward could be Zadina, who is second in the QMJHL in points (46) and tied for second in goals (24). With decent goaltending from either Jakub Skarek (2018 draft eligible), who had a 3.34 GAA in three games at the 2017 WJC, or Josef Korenar (San Jose Sharks), the Czech Republic could take home a medal for the first time since winning the bronze in 2005.

Switzerland

Coach -- Christian Wohlwend
2018 NHL Draft watch -- Philipp Kurashev, C, Quebec (QMJHL); Nico Gross, D, Oshawa (OHL)
Schedule -- Dec. 27, Belarus (3 p.m. ET, NHLN, TSN); Dec. 28, Russia (2 p.m. ET, TSN3, TSN5, RDS2); Dec. 30, Sweden (2 p.m. ET; TSN5, RDS); Dec. 31, Czech Republic (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS2)
Outlook -- Led by Nico Hischier (New Jersey Devils), Switzerland put a scare into the United States in the quarterfinals. But Switzerland will have a younger and less experienced team this year. One player who could replace some of the offense Hischier provided is Kurashev, a 6-foot, 191-pound forward who has 31 points (eight goals, 23 assists) in 33 games for Quebec in the QMJHL.

Belarus

Coach -- Yuri Faikov
2018 NHL Draft watch -- Yegor Sharangovich, C, Dynamo Minsk (RUS); Vladislav Yeryomenko, D, Calgary (WHL)
Schedule -- Dec. 26, Sweden (2 p.m. ET; RDS); Dec. 27, Switzerland (3 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN); Dec. 29, Russia (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN3, RDS); Dec. 30, Czech Republic (12 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS)
Outlook -- Belarus is back in the top level at the WJC after winning the Division I Group A tournament in December 2016. The team has one player who has been drafted by an NHL team, right wing Maksim Sushko, a fourth-round pick (No. 117) by the Flyers at the 2017 draft. He had one goal in five games for Belarus at the Division I Group A tournament, but has 26 points (16 goals, 10 assists) in 28 games with Owen Sound of the OHL. Most of the team is drawn from Belarus' under-20 team in the top professional league or the under-18 team, which plays in Belarus' second division. That includes 6-6, 214-pound goaltender Nikita Tolopilo, a prospect for the 2018 draft.