After two games in the 2017 World Juniors, Finland is in trouble. The defending gold medalists are the only team in Group A without a point, with a tough game against Sweden still to come, as well as Switzerland, who have been known to upset top teams in the past. At this point, they’re actually at risk of finishing fifth and missing the quarterfinal round.
All it would take is a regulation loss to Sweden and suddenly Finland’s final game against Switzerland would be a battle to make the quarterfinals, with Finland forced to win in regulation. If Switzerland manages to win any of their three remaining games, such as against Denmark, then Finland will have to get at least a point against Sweden to have any hope of moving on.
It’s been a rough start for the captaincy of Olli Juolevi, who has yet to hit the scoresheet himself. He and Finland dropped their tournament opener against fellow Canuck prospect Lukas Jasek and the Czech Republic, which was disappointing. But losing to Denmark, who have only ever beaten Switzerland before at the World Juniors, was absolutely stunning.
None of the blame can truly be placed at the feet of Juolevi, who is one of the few returning players from 2016’s gold medal-winning team. Finland just hasn’t been able to make much of anything happen offensively.
Gone are their top three scorers from last season: Patrik Laine, Sebastian Aho, and Jesse Puljujarvi. That team’s fourth leading scorer was Juolevi, who had nine assists, but no goals. Juolevi is still playing his quietly effective game, but passes that might have previously become assists have led to nothing from Finland’s forwards.
On one occasion, Juolevi absorbed a hit, kept the puck in his skates, then pivoted his man off the puck, kept possession with his quick hands, and made a perfect outlet pass to his teammate on the sideboards. And his teammate missed the pass. That led to a long shift in the defensive zone and multiple chances for the Czech Republic.
As much as you might want him to, Juolevi is not a player that will take over a game and win single-handedly. He’s not likely to go end-to-end and wire a slap shot just under the bar, though he made an attempt midway through the third against Denmark.
Weirdly, Juolevi is not being leaned on as heavily as you might expect. He played under 20 minutes in both games and has been on the second power play unit. Judging by ice time, he’s actually on the second pairing.
Frankly, he shouldn’t be. While he’s been on the ice for three goals against, none have been his fault. In fact, on the first Czech goal he had already cleared the puck from the defensive zone twice only to see his teammates turn it over before the Czechs came back in and finally scored.
Against Denmark, starting goaltender Veini Vehvilainen faced three shots in the first period. He made one save, giving up the rebound for the first goal. Juolevi was on the ice for the second goal, a long shot that had no business going in.
Finland dominated Denmark, out-shooting them 36-10, but lack of finish and woeful goaltending did them in. Also, Kasper Krog, the red-headed Danish netminder, played the game of his life.
Juolevi is tied for second on Finland in shots on goal with six and rung another off the post against Denmark on a shorthanded chance. As the game against Denmark progressed, he seemed to try to do more and more, perhaps out of a sense of urgency or possibly out of frustration with his teammates.
We may see a different team when they face their nordic rivals, Sweden, but so far Finland doesn’t look anything like a medal contender.
The Czech Republic, meanwhile, are off to a better start, from their upset over Finland to salvaging a point by taking Switzerland to overtime after entering the third period down by two.
Lukas “Mystery Man” Jasek has been a key player for the Czech Republic despite his lack of points. When the Czech Republic took a late lead against Finland, it was Jasek and his linemates sent over the boards to defend the one-goal lead in the final minute. He has yet to be on the ice for a goal against.
Jasek is also one of the go-to penalty killers for the Czechs, even taking faceoffs shorthanded, which is unusual for a winger.
But while his line is more defensively inclined, Jasek is still tied for the team-lead in shots, with eight through two games. Many of those shots have come from distance, but he’s had scoring chances around the net as well and he’s clearly not afraid to crash the crease looking for rebounds.
Jasek is averaging a little over 16 minutes per game, which puts him fifth among forwards for the Czech Republic. He’s not playing on the power play, so all that ice time is coming at even-strength and on the penalty kill.
What I really noticed about Jasek is his effectiveness on the cycle. He tends to win puck battles along the boards and has good enough hands to control the puck in tight spaces and make quick, short passes to keep plays alive. His best offensive moment came on a rush when he dragged the puck through a defender’s legs, then centred for a scoring chance. It was the first little hint of some underlying skill in his game.
He’s also good at zone exits and entries, whether with his strong skating or passes. He’s effective in the neutral zone both offensively, driving through the middle of the ice with his skating, and defensively, picking off passes and disrupting rushes.
Jasek has the look of a coach’s dream: he does all the little things right, those details that coaches love to see. He wins puck battles, doesn’t cheat in the defensive zone, makes the smart pass to get the puck out, finishes his checks, and goes hard to the net.
Does he have an NHL future? That’s hard to say, especially from just being able to see him in two games. All those details don’t matter if you don’t have the ability to think the game at NHL speeds and the speed and skill to physicalize those thoughts. The players who can do that tend to put up points against their peers and Jasek has yet to do so. But I can say that I like what little I've seen from Jasek and look forward to seeing him in a Canucks jersey someday soon if only in the pre-season.
