Ducks World Junior Championships Preview

By Thomas Harrington

The Anaheim Ducks had four prospects named to the upcoming World Junior Championships: forwards Carey Terrance and Austin Burnevik will play for Team USA, defenseman Vojtech Port will play for Team Czechia, and defenseman Darels Uljanskis will play for Team Latvia. However, the biggest news for the Ducks was who was not named to the tournament, as forward Beckett Sennecke did not make the Team Canada roster. He becomes the first third overall pick after his draft to not make the tournament since 1997, when Jean-Pierre Dumont was not named to Team Canada.

This will be Terrance’s second trip to the World Juniors. He was part of Team USA last year when they won gold, but he didn’t play in any games. He was the team’s spare forward, and they didn’t run into any injury issues. He didn’t play as a result. This year, Terrance won’t be counted on to be one of the team’s offensive leaders, but he should see some playing time. He’s scored 14 goals and 26 points in 29 games for the Erie Otters of the OHL this season while serving as their captain.

It’s a pleasant surprise to see Burnevik named to Team USA. The Ducks chose him in the sixth round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft and he has scored nine goals and 16 points in 17 games for St. Cloud State University. He leads St. Cloud in goals and points, while ranking third in assists. In the entire NCAA, he’s tied for 16th in goals and tied for 45th in points. He may end up filling the role of Terrance from a year ago where he’s one of the team’s spare forwards, but I’m hoping Burnevik gets to play in some games. 

This will be Port’s first trip to the World Juniors. He’s one of four drafted defensemen on Czechia’s roster and he’ll likely have a top four role with the team. This year, he has played for both the Moose Jaw Warriors and Lethbridge Hurricanes of the WHL where he has recorded five assists in 27 games between the two teams.

This will be Uljanskis’ second trip to the World Juniors. He played for Team Latvia last year and recorded one assist in five games. Latvia advanced to the quarterfinals where they lost to Sweden. Uljanskis is one of two players on Team Latvia who have been drafted by an NHL team. The Ducks selected him in the seventh round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. This season, Uljanskis has played for AIK J20 of the J20 Nationell and scored five goals and 21 points in 27 games. Uljanskis leads his team’s defense in assists and points, and is third on his team in points.

Sennecke not making Team Canada is obviously a huge disappointment for him. He initially wasn’t even named to Team Canada’s selection camp, but he was playing so well that they were forced to extend an invitation to him. Not being one of the players originally selected for the camp, Sennecke faced an uphill battle and was a longshot to be named to the tournament. From what I’ve read, he had a strong camp and was almost good enough to force his way onto the team despite not getting the initial invite to camp. But, in the end, Sennecke didn’t quite make it. Team Canada is an incredibly deep team and are definitely one of the favorites to win it all. However, if they don’t win or struggle to score goals in the tournament, leaving Sennecke off of the team will prove to be a mistake.

The World Junior Championships begin December 26th. Terrance and Burnevik will start the tournament on Thursday against Germany, and then play Latvia, Finland, and finally Canada on New Year’s Eve. Port will start the tournament on Thursday against Switzerland, and then play Kazakhstan, Slovakia, and finally Sweden on New Year’s Eve. Uljanskis will start the tournament on Friday against Canada, and then face the United States, Germany, and finally Finland on New Year’s Eve. The quarterfinals will begin on January 2nd. The World Junior Championships is one of my favorite moments on the hockey calendar. Over the years, Anaheim’s prospects have found great success at this tournament. Despite Sennecke not making Canada, this will still be a great experience for four of Anaheim’s prospects. There’s also a chance that a future Anaheim prospect could be seen at this tournament. 2025 draft eligible players who the Ducks could select next summer include players like James Hagens, Porter Martone, Matthew Schaefer, and Viktor Eklund.

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December 26th, 2024