[Sandman]

Hlinka-Gretzky Cup Summary (PART THE FIRST):

Team USA won it's first Gold Medal since 2003 with a rather non-descript squad (or so I thought), beating Team Canada 4-3 in a SO in the Semi-Final, and then a very good Team Sweden in the Finals (5-3). The Americans accomplished this feat without the benefit of championship-caliber goaltending, with starter Brady Knowling finishing 12th in the tourney in SV% (.866), and 6th in GAA (2.35). Canada beat Team Finland in the Bronze Medal game, 3-0.

-RW Marcus Nordmark, SWE (6'1",183lbs): Power and speed, a nose for the net, with well balanced offensive skill- showing a lethal wrister, good puck-skill, and well-developed passing. He's also pretty good without the puck, finishing tied for 3rd with a +8, and showing keen anticipation in breaking up plays and intercepting passes. He led the tournament with 5gp/7g/5a/12pts,+8, 2 PIM, tying for 6th all-time in points, and 9th all-time in goals, and was the main catalyst for Sweden's offense, though he doesn't seem to be much of a play-driver. Looks like some have him in the middle of the first-round of the 2026 Draft so far, but he's certainly one to watch. Nordmark was held pointless in the Gold Medal game, but put up a hat-trick in the semi-final against Finland that included the game-tying goal to send the game to OT (a long-range snipe through traffic from the high slot), and the game-winner (cutting in to the net and beating the goalie backhand glove-side) to win the contest 6-5.

-RW/LW Elton Hermansson, SWE (6'1",181lbs): Tied for second in the tourney with 5gp/6g/5a/11pts,+5, 2 PIM, Hermey is more dynamic than his countryman Nordmark, with impressive puckhandling ability to dangle around opponents, excellent speed and footwork, a lethal shooting arsenal, and the ability to drive play with sharp playmaking skill. He was Sweden's best player at times, but is a little more finesse than sandpaper. He's better with the puck than he is without it, and though he doesn't embarass himself- he could stand to be a little more involved defensively.

-RD Axel Elofsson, SWE (5'10",163lbs): Tied with Hermansson for 2nd in tournament scoring, and tops for D, with 5gp/2g/9a/11pts,+8, 2 PIM- five points ahead of the next-highest scoring D. His 11 points are tied with Oleg Tverdovsky (1993-94) for the most points by a defenseman at the Hlinka all-time. He averaged over 20 minutes TOI, and logged over 23 minutes in three contests, with top PP duty. Small, but skilled and dynamic, he could use better top-end speed and improved explosiveness, but he's incredibly poised and confident with the puck on his blade, with sublime vision and creativity. As one can imagine, he could use improvements in his own-zone play, and struggles against larger opponents. In 2024-25, he put up an eye-popping 32 points in 38 games in the J20, with Orebro.

-RW Blake Zielinski, USA (6'0",185lbs): A big surprise for me, placing fourth in the event with 5gp/4g/5a/9pts,+1, 0 PIM, after an impressive USHL season in 2024-25, amassing 32 points in 41 games for the Des Moines Buccaneers. By the fourth game, Z was leading Team USA with 8 points- doubling up on the next-highest teammate (although Jack Hextall narrowed the gap with a 3-point effort in the Gold-Medal Game). Very well-balanced offensively, with equal parts goal-scoring (on a strong shot and a nose for the net), and quality playmaking, he's a very conscientious two-way player with good puck-skill, and skating- but he could stand to add better acceleration and top speed.

-LW Ethan Belchetz, CAN (6'5",227lbs): Though 4 of his points came in the first game, a 5-3 win against Finland, Belchetz was nevertheless impressive- finishing 5th in the tourney with 5/4g/4a/8pts,+5, 0 PIM. His enormous size gives him an advantage over his junior-aged counterparts, and he's not shy about exploiting it with his robust power game, but he conducts a lot of his business with well above-average skill, finesse, vision, and awareness. He's a decent skater for his size (but needs some work on his acceleration and top gear), and spends a lot of his time in the low slot, jockeying for positioning and fishing for loose pucks, with a wide array of dangerous shots. Obviously, he needs to work on his consistency game-to-game, but he seems to have ebbs and flows in his intensity on a shift-to-shift basis; his involvement defensively also has peaks and valleys. As a 16 year-old with the Windsor Spitfires, he put up 38 points in just 56 games in 2024-25, so it's a good bet that he'll be picked in the top half of the first-round next summer- likely top-10.

-RW Mathis Preston, CAN (5'11",176lbs): Preston is a dynamic forward that can dissect opposing defenses with his uncanny speed, a rapid change of direction and pace, supernatural awareness, and his ability to stickhandle in a phone booth; he finished in a three-way tie for 6th in Hlinka scoring, with 5gp/4g/3a/7pts,+7, 2 PIM. He seemed to be everywhere all at once, and though he's not particularly physical or hard-nosed, he's a buzzsaw with an amazing small-area game, and a number of ways to beat opponents one-on-one. With excellent vision and anticipation, I would say he's pretty well-balanced offensively (despite having more goals than assists everywhere he's played) between his finishing skills, his killer shot, and his finely tuned playmaking ability. I wouldn't call him a stalwart, but he hustles hard on the backcheck, and drives play through transition with apparent ease. Already, he's being talked about as a possible top-10 pick in the 2026 Draft, especially after posting 45 points in 54 WHL games as a 16 year-old with Spokane, with another 16 points in 20 playoff games.

-LHC Oscar Holmertz, SWE (6'0",190lbs): A potential first-rounder in 2026, Holmertz is perhaps one of those "good at everything, but not elite in any one area" guys, but he goes to work, and gets the job done. There's not many true weaknesses in his game- he skates and handles well, plays with pace, has a good shot, decent finishing skills, and possesses excellent vision and anticipation to make plays; if there's an area where he's high-end, it's his smarts and awareness all over the ice. Holmertz works hard, and contributes well in all three zones. In this event, he was tied for 6th in scoring, with 5gp/2g/5a/7pts,+4, 0 PIM, and he performed extremely well for a 16 year-old in the J20, amassing 30 points in just 32 games- pretty eyebrow-raising numbers.

-RHC Jack Hextall, USA (6'0",185lbs): Hextall was one of Team USA's best players game-in, game-out, but seemed to get even better as the tournament wore on. Tied for 6th in scoring with 5gp/2g/5a/7pts,+2, 2 PIM, his style reminds me a bit of one of my favorites from the 2025 Draft, in Jack Murtagh; very competitive, he skates quite well, with tremendous straight-ahead speed, and problem-solving agility, using his feet and hands to drive play, locate space, and make plays with his well-developed passing skill, and high-end vision. Hexy is also no slouch in the goal-scoring department, owning a laser shot with good power and precision, but usually opts to pass first. With leading-scorer Blake Zielinski held to one point in the Gold Medal Game against Sweden, Hextall took the reins- playing over 20 minutes, posting a goal and two assists, and showing his leadership capabilities. He also plays a very responsible two-way game, and was often an important part of the transition for his team. With 34 points in 53 USHL games with Youngstown, Hexy was 4th in scoring for U-17 players in that league- he might be one to watch.

-LW Oscar Hemming, FIN (6'4",190lbs): The younger brother of Dallas first-rounder Emil Hemming, the larger Oscar employs a more rugged power game than his sibling, with greater physicality, and perhaps an even stronger net-front presence. Oscar was tied for 9th in tournament scoring with 5gp/4g/2a/6pts,+1, 2 PIM, which was 3 behind his older brother's performance in the same event in 2023, but was enough to lead his team in scoring by 2 points. Hemming has a dangerous shot with good precision, but makes his living down low, and in front of the net- causing havoc, setting the screen, and waiting to pounce on rebounds, tips, and loose pucks. Going forward, he will need work primarily on his skating, as his boots are a little heavy, but he moves okay when he gets up to top speed. I really like this kid, and I believe he's being underrated thus far.

-LW Noah Davidson, USA (6'3",214lbs): Unbelievably, he's not available until 2027 (Nov.1st birthday), but he's definitely one to watch. Tied for 9th in the tourney (5gp/3g/3a/6pts,+1, 2 PIM), he's going to play this upcoming season in Medicine Hat of the WHL. Size, speed, smarts, and power.

-RW Nils Bartholdsson, SWE (5'10",174lbs): Tied for 9th in scoring, with 5gp/2g/4a/6pts,+6, 4 PIM, he's a smaller forward with some pluck who isn't very physical, and has trouble with larger opponents, but works hard in puck battles. His best attribute is his near-elite puck-skill, showing the ability to out maneuver opponents with dekes, dangles, and deception, and he is exceptionally slippery and elusive. While he's a high-end skater, he is perhaps a notch or two below elite in this area, but he possesses superb offensive awareness, heightened hockey sense, and a well-balanced skillset between his dangerous shot, and his exciting playmaking acumen. Bartholdsson is a play-driver at this level, and showed good effort in this event on the backcheck, but was stuck playing on the perimeter in the OZ too much for my liking. In 2024-25, he amassed an impressive 37 points in 39 J20 games with Rogle.

-RHD Ryan Lin, CAN (5'11",176lbs): Lin is a candidate to be picked in the top half of the first-round (perhaps even top-10) in 2026, and he showed why in this tournament- tying for 9th-overall in scoring, and 2nd in scoring by D, with 5gp/2g/4a/6pts,+9, 8 PIM. Lin led the Vancouver Giants in 2024-25 with over 25 minutes per night as a 16 year-old, but played mostly bottom-pairing minutes (and PP2) for a deep Team Canada blueline in this tournament. He started with 5 points in the first two games- a goal and an assist against Finland, then a goal and two assists against the Swiss, but was surprisingly good defensively in every game, and led all skaters with a +9 (tied with teammate Adam Valentini). While more offense may have been expected in this tourney, his 53 points in 60 WHL games in 2024-25 represent the 9th-most points by a U-17 defenseman in league history. Lin is an effortless skater with high-end speed and agility, drives play through transition, handles well, and can contribute in all areas with his elite hockey sense and compete- he will even throw the body around when needed. In the offensive zone, Lin is much more of a playmaker than a goal-scoring threat, and exhibits good vision and creativity, with poise and calmness in running the point. Going forward, his shot will need work as he doesn't get enough power or accuracy behind it right now.

Part 2 Coming Soon!