Montreal Canadiens: Jacob Olofsson and Alexander Romanov join the list of prospects at the World Jrs
By Omar L
The number of Montreal Canadiens prospects at the 2019 World Juniors increases to five with Jacob Olofsson and Alexander Romanov getting invites.
The 2019 World Junior Hockey Championships is getting more and more exciting for the Montreal Canadiens. On Monday, it was revealed that Josh Brook and Nick Suzuki would be taking part for Team Canada while 2018 second-round pick Jesse Ylonen received an invite to participate for Team Finland. And now two days later, two more Habs prospects are getting the nod to play for their countries in British Columbia.
2018 second-round picks Jacob Olofsson, and Alexander Romanov have been invited to play for Sweden and Romanov respectively. This makes the entire Montreal Canadiens second round from last year’s draft getting recognition of their skills to play for their nation on the big stage over the holidays.
Romanov was the first of the three selections and has been playing in the KHL since the beginning of the season, a feat not seen as much by an 18-year-old. The young defenceman has played in 27 games for CSKA Moscow, and although he remains pointless, his overall play has improved enough to warrant more trust from the coaching staff to play in key situations.
Olofsson is in a professional league as well seeing 20 games for Timra HK of the Swedish Hockey League. The 18-year-old has fit in nicely on the team’s third line putting up two goals and four assists for a total of six points. He has also been the top centre for Sweden at U20 events and could find himself there once the World Juniors begin.
Although the number of Montreal Canadiens prospects going to the World Juniors is at five, there’s a chance it could go up to seven. Six is already a lock as Ryan Poehling is likely to be named to Team USA, but there’s a chance Cayden Primeau is one of the goaltenders for the States.
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Either way, the prospect pool continues to shine and receive praise, and given the previous stats of the Habs system, that’s a massive plus.