All-Time World Juniors Team

Recently on Vancouver sports radio, I heard TSN analyst/scout Craig Button mention that TSN would soon be selecting their all-time World Junior Tournament Team. This would obviously be in conjunction with the upcoming World Juniors tournament, which at this point is the most highly anticipated event on the hockey calendar what with no NHL action at the moment. I figured I'd jump in and select my own all-time World Junior Tournament squad. I started at the official recognition by the IIHF in 1977 until present day.
This will be an especially difficult task seeing as no player ever plays more than two, possibly three different years in the Under-20 tournament. I've tried to select the squad by looking at as much multi-year dominance as well as team success. Here's what I came up with.
Many, many familiar and obvious names on the All-time team. A few lesser-lights and near unknowns sprinkled in. The fact is, these were the players who performed the best at the World Juniors over the years.
 
GOALTENDERS
There's really only one clear-cut goalie in overall dominance over the history of the World Juniors, Evgeny Belosheiken of the old Soviet hockey system. Belosheiken helped lead the Soviets to two Golds and a Bronze in 1984, 1985 and 1986 posting a Won/Loss record of 14-2 with a Goals Against Average of 2.30. He was named Best Goalie in the 1986 Tournament and famously played for the Soviets in the 1987 Canada Cup, losing Game 2 of the Finals against Canada on an overtime goal by Mario Lemieux. Drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in 1991, he played 3 games for the AHL Cape Breton Oilers before returning to Russia. He sadly committed suicide in 1999. 
The second goalie on my All-Time squad is American Jack Campbell. He helped lead the US to their second ever Gold Medal in 2010 and followed that up by being named Best Goalie in a Bronze Medal effort the following year. Overall Campbell went 10-4 with a 2.20 GAA over three tournaments.
My third string goalie is Canada's Jimmy Waite who want 8-0 over two tourneys with a 2.69, earning Best Goalie in a Gold Medal effort in 1988.
DEFENCE
Canada's Ryan Ellis and Alex Pietrangelo form the first pair of defenders on the All-Time team. Ellis is the all-time points leader among defencemen with 25 points in 19 games helping his country win a Gold and two Silvers from 2009 to 2011. Pietrangelo played in 2009 and 2010 producing 15 points in 12 games. They each won Best Defenceman, Pietrangelo in 2010, Ellis in 2011. 
My second D-pair consists of a pair of Finns, Reijo Ruotsalainen and Juha Jyrkkio. Ruotsalainen collected 21 points over four tournaments (one of the few to play in four World Juniors) and was named top defender in 1980 as Finland won the Silver, their first ever medal. Jyrkkio is 3rd all-time in defence production with 19 points in 19 games from 1977 to 1979. Rounding out the defence is Hall of Fame Russian, Viacheslav Fetisov and Czech, Jiri Slegr. Fetisov was named top defender in 1977 and 1978 putting up 15 points in 14 games as the Soviets won Gold both years. Slegr was named top defenceman in 1991 as he and the Czechs won their second straight Bronze. He counted 16 points in 14 games over the two tournaments.
The extra D-man is Swede Peter Andersson who ranks fourth all-time in defenceman points with 18 in 21 games from 1983 to 1985. 

FORWARDS
Peter Forsberg is the all-time career scoring leader in World Junior history with 42 points in 14 games and was named top forward in 1993 as Sweden earned their second of back-to-back Silver Medals. Markus Naslund was Forsberg's running mate both years and produced a ridiculous 21 goals and 34 points in 14 games. Esa Tikkanen has to be considered the top Left Wing ever in World Junior history, producing 36 points over 21 games from 1983-1985 helping the Finns to a Silver in 1984. 
The Eastern European bloc is represented on the second line of the all-time team. Pavel Bure on Right Wing has scored the most ever World Junior goals with 27 in 21 games from 1989 to 1991 and was Top Forward in 1989. Alexander Mogilny was named top forward in 1988 and scored 19 goals, 35 points in 20 games over two tournaments. Robert Reichel rounds out the second line having scored the second most points ever to Forsberg with 40 in 21 games in 1989 and 1990. He was named top forward in 1990.
Czechoslovakia's Vladimir Ruzicka Centres the third line. His 25 goals over 19 games in 1982 and 1983 (as Czechoslovakia won Silver both years) are second all-time. He is flanked by Soviet Vladimir Krutov and German Dieter Hegen. Krutov potted 15 goals and 25 points in a mere 11 games in 1979 and 1980. The Soviets won Gold both years and Krutov was same top forward both years as well. Dieter Hegen scored 15 goals in 12 games for the lowly Germans in the 1981 and 1982 tournaments, leading the entire tournament in goals and points in 1981.
The first Canadian forwards show up on the fourth line as Eric Lindros centres Jordan Eberle and Alex Ovechkin. Lindros of course was a highly-touted 16 year old playing in the 1990 tourney scoring 4 goals in 7 games. In 1991 he was named top forward, scoring 17 points in 7 games as Canada won their second straight Gold. Eberle's 14 career World Junior goals are the most ever by a Canadian and he was named top forward in 2009. Ovechkin scored 18 goals in 18 games from 2003 to 2005 as Russia won a Gold and a Silver. He was named top forward in 2005.
The extra forward has to be Michael Nylander of Sweden who produced a ridiculous 14 goals and 14 assists over 14 games in 1991 and 1992. He also had 14 PIMs in that time. He was named top forward in 1992 as Sweden earned a Silver medal.

The Foundational Player on the squad is Wayne Gretzky, who as a 16 year old collected 17 points in 6 games as Canada earned the Bronze in 1978. His 2.83 Points per game are second all-time to Forsberg's 3.00. If The Great One has a chance to be on any All-time team list, we have to find a spot for him. He definitely earns it with that performance.

Among the honourable mentions would be Finland's Raimo Helminen who was named top forward in 1984 and scored 29 points in 14 games in 1983 and 1984. Soviet goaltender Alexander Tyzhnykh helped win Gold in both 1977 and 1978 with a record of 11-1 and GAA of 2.58. He would go on to play two games for the Soviets in the 1984 Canada Cup. Perhaps my favourite World Junior player ever deserves an honourable mention, a well deserved one at that. Pauli Jaks of Switzerland was named top goaltender of the 1991 tournament even though he went 1-4 with a 6.00 GAA. His 50-plus save performance in a 6-0 loss to Canada in the first game of the tournament was personally memorable. I wrote about him and my quest to collect as many of his hockey cards as possible here years ago.

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