The objective of every player who participates in the World Junior Championships is to bring home the gold medal. In reality, only one country will survive the group stage and win out in the playoffs to do so. It takes the perfect amount of dominance, skill, and a little bit of luck to get the job done. Few have managed to accomplish that.
We've already talked about the goalies and the prospects that have participated. Thus far, only one player, Ronan Seeley, has won the gold, with many others falling just short. While Seeley isn't the only gold medalist in the organization, that's a topic for another day. Today, I want to tell the stories of the current NHL players who've come up short of winning it all.
For these six Hurricanes, they made it to the dance, but they weren't the Belle of the ball. Some of them made it to the championship game. Others were just there for the ride. They didn't achieve their goal of winning the World Juniors, but a few made a name for themselves and proved they had what it took to survive in the NHL.
Some of the future Hurricanes failed to reach the podium
Before he was showcasing his skills at the 4 Nations tournament for the United States, Jaccob Slavin was trying to lead a different American team to gold at the 2014 World Juniors. This year's tournament was littered with future Hurricanes. Between his American teammate Brady Skjei, to Sweden's Elias Lindholm, to the tournament's leading scorer Teuvo Teravainen, and more.
On paper, this U.S. team wasn't nearly as stacked as their Canadian counterpart. Still, the Americans managed a second-place finish in their group after losing to Canada, a game during which Slavin recorded a short-handed assist. Despite this, the Americans couldn't handle a first-period lead in the quarterfinals, falling 5-3. Slavin finished the tournament with a goal and an assist but no medal.
That same year, Nikolaj Ehlers was fighting to get Denmark back into the top group. Sitting in Division I once again, Ehlers put together a solid tournament in 2014, scoring six points, which tied him for the seventh-most in his group. Most importantly, Denmark was perfect. Sweeping all five games, the Danes earned a spot in the top group in 2015.
For his encore, Ehlers was named to the 2015 Danish team as well. In their final game of group play, the Danes recorded their first-ever win, defeating Switzerland in a shootout. This ensured they would avoid relegation and advance to the playoffs, where they'd lose 8-0 to Canada in the quarterfinals. Ehlers recorded one goal and three assists, finishing second on his team in scoring.
Before becoming a Hurricane in the summer of 2018, Andrei Svechnikov got his chance to represent Russia at the World Juniors and solidify himself at the top of the upcoming draft. It wasn't a perfect tournament for Svechnikov, but he still managed five assists in four group games, tying him for second on the team in points. Russia was dispatched in the quarterfinals after a 4-2 loss to the U.S.
Others earned podium finishes, just not the one they'd hoped for
Eight years before Svechnikov, there was another top pick trying to make a big impression. Taylor Hall was expected to be the top selection in the 2010 Draft. His appearance at the World Juniors before it proved to be a big step in the right direction. It began with seven points during the group stage, including a hat trick and an assist against Slovakia, an 8-2 win for Canada.
Earning a bye into the semifinals, Hall added two more goals against Switzerland to set up a battle with the U.S. for the gold medal. Despite a goal and two helpers against the Americans, Hall's group fell short, losing 6-5 in overtime. Hall finished tied for third in the tournament in both goals (6) and points (12), doing more than enough to ensure his spot atop the draft the following June.
K'Andre Miller had two cracks at medaling with the United States in 2019 and 2020. In his first go-around, Miller teamed up with Cayden Primeau and Jack Drury. He only provided one assist during the tournament, finding the scoresheet in a blowout victory over Kazakhstan. Miller only played 10:15 in the Gold Medal Game, a 3-2 loss to Finland, to earn him the silver.
With another chance in 2020, Miller was back and sporting an "A" for the team. Statistically, he had a better tournament. Miller doubled his offensive output, providing a pair of helpers during the group stage. He also averaged five more minutes on the ice. Unfortunately, the Americans ran into a wall in the quarterfinals, losing once again to Finland, 1-0, to fall short of the podium.
One of the most recent roster players to play in the tournament was Jackson Blake. He suited up for the Americans at the 2023 tournament as they tried to get back on the podium after a stunning loss to Czechia in the 2022 quarterfinals. Blake put together a solid start to the tournament, picking up assists in three of their four group games to finish atop Group B.
Blake added his first goal of the tournament in the quarterfinals, an 11-1 rout of Germany. His goal game at the expense of Nikita Quapp. The U.S. was bested in the semifinals by Canada, giving them a chance to play for the bronze. In a wild affair with Sweden, the Americans prevailed 8-7 in overtime. Blake added two assists in the win, finishing with six points in seven games.