The Chicago Blackhawks have two players playing in the 2025 World Junior Championship. Oliver Moore is a member of Team USA and Jiri Felcman is with Czechia. Both of them picked up wins with their respective teams on Thursday.
Moore didn’t find the scoresheet in Team USA’s 10-4 win over Germany but we knew that wouldn’t be his primary focus. He was great with his speed, defending in his own end, and killing penalties.
There was one penalty-killing moment in particular, that showed exactly how he can use his speed to make things happen. Team USA was killing a penalty that they took as a result of a bad challenge and Moore almost scored short-handed. It was one of many chances he had in that type of situation.
Moore might not be a difference-making type of superstar player but he has the tools needed to do the little things the right way. It is hard to win without players like him. Team USA has plenty of stars to score regularly so Moore can focus on playing his game the right way. With that level of speed, he has a ton of value.
As for Felcman, his Team Czechia took care of their business against the Swiss 5-1. The former 3rd round pick is still trying to make his way through the ranks. You know that he’s going to learn good habits and play in a smart system with the Czechs.
For the Blackhawks, the most exciting part about this slate of games might have been the idea of future drafts. Right now, the Hawks have the worst record in the NHL. If the season ended today, they would have the highest odds of winning the Draft Lottery.
At the very least, they will likely end up having top-five odds. As long as the young guys keep developing well, that is honestly a good thing because they are still very much building for the future. Team USA forward James Hagens is the front-runner to be that number-one pick.
Seeing James Hagens play for Team USA had to be eye-opening for many of the lower-end teams in the NHL. He’s been very good at Boston College and he took it to another level in this game against Germany. Hagens had two goals and two assists for four points. He was one of the best players on either team.
Not only did he show off his incredible shot/ability to get open, but his ability to playmake, and find others was on full display. One NHL team is going to be very excited about landing him.
If he were to form a two-headed monster down the middle with Connor Bedard, they’d have a dynamic line with a star down the middle on the ice for a large portion of the game.
Is it worth it to sell off assets and “tank” for him? There is an argument to be made that as long as the young NHL players continue to develop, losing games won’t be the worst thing for the organization.
Hagens is the type of player who makes an impact everywhere he goes. It took him exactly one World Juniors game to have a huge performance. That is great for his resume as he potentially will go number one.
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