During the week of July 31st to August 4^th, five members of the University of Michigan men's hockey team took part in the World Junior Summer Showcase which was held in Plymouth, Michigan. This Showcase was to serve as an evaluation for players seeking to earn a position on their national teams for the 2024 I.I.H.F. World Junior Championship which will be played between December 26, 2023, through January 5, 2024, in Gothenburg, Sweden. 45 U.S. players were invited to the Showcase and were divided into 2 teams. Those two squads were joined by teams from Finland and Sweden and each team played 4 games.

The 2023 U.S. Men's Team finished with the Bronze Medal in the Tournament and featured 5 players from the Wolverines, Rutger McGroarty, Gavin Brindley, Dylan Duke, Luke Hughes, and Seamus Casey (although Casey was a reserve and didn't see any action). In today’s piece we're going to take a look at how each of the five performed in the tournament and once again look into our Crystal Puck to evaluate their chances of making the final roster for the US World Junior team.

 

Gavin Brindley

Though the results of his efforts weren't reflected in his personal stat line, Brindley still impressed with his quick feet, his willingness to battle in the high traffic areas in front of the net and corners, and his high hockey IQ. The hockey IQ was best demonstrated by his read and react skills both on the offensive and defensive side of the puck. Perhaps the most impressive attribute that stood out with Brindley at this tournament was when you watched him play, you could never tell the score of the game. His compete level during every single shift of the tournament was always at the highest level and whether his team was down by three goals or up by three goals, his high intensity level of play never wavered.

[AFTER THE JUMP: the other four players]

 

[USA Hockey/Rena Laverty]

Rutger McGroarty

It seemed like the coaching staff for the World Junior Team wanted to see how McGroarty would play in various situations and with different line mates. For the final two games of the tournament, they moved him from the Blue team to the White team and had him play those games on the same line with Gavin Brindley. Statistically McGroarty hit the scoresheet in three of the four games played but what really stood out was his improved foot speed. His first three strides from a glide appear considerably quicker and he seems to have increased his overall speed. His willingness to drive harder to the net both with and without the puck was apparent in my viewings.

 

Seamus Casey

With 16 defensemen divided onto the two US teams in the tournament, it was tough for any of the blueliners to get into a good rhythm as each team went with four pairs per game (as opposed to the typical three). In the first game, Casey was paired with new Michigan transfer, Tyler Duke. The pair are not strangers to each other having gone through the NTDP program together and regularly playing as partners during that time. They looked good together, reading off each other in both the defensive and offensive zones and being very aggressive in the neutral zone with tight gaps, knowing the other was backing up the other who was challenging the play. The coaches probably wanted to make it a little more challenging and uncomfortable for them after that, as they were split up for the rest of the tournament.

Casey quarterbacked the 1st powerplay unit for his team and did a great job of distributing the puck and also penetrating down low with it when the opportunity presented itself. He did struggle at times in board battles with some of the bigger forwards from Sweden and Finland, but he tried to compensate with good body position and a quick stick. Casey was one of a few players who was kept out of the 3rd game of the tournament, which pitted the US White team against the US Blue team in what turned out to be a very unemotional 'kiss and giggle' scrimmage. This was likely due to a desire to let lesser players get more ice time than anything related to Casey’s play.

 

[USA Hockey/Rena Laverty]

Frank Nazar III

Nazar didn’t have the opportunity to play for the US WJC team last year because of the injury which sidelined him for over 2/3 of Michigan's season, but his play during this Showcase Tournament bodes well not only for his chances of making this year’s US WJC team but also being an integral part of the Wolverines in 2023-24. Nazar finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 5 goals and 8 points, which included four goals and one assist in a 10-1 rout of Sweden. His ability to transition from defense to offense was unparalleled by anyone from any team and resulted in numerous scoring chances in every game. His defensive play was phenomenal, as he was always the first man over the boards on a penalty kill situation and was a consistent threat looking for opportunities to create offense while shorthanded.

 

Tyler Duke

As mentioned above, Duke partnered with Seamus Casey in the first game and they both looked very good, despite their team’s lackluster performance against Finland. Duke looked good, but not dynamic in the last three games after being split from Casey, appearing to lack chemistry with his new defense partners. He played a safe, smart game in the offensive zone: when he had the puck, he looked to create or find a lane to get a shot through to the net or if it wasn't there, he would just put the puck down low. Duke limited pinches down the boards, as he didn't want to risk being caught up ice and giving up odd-man rushes. His strong play in the neutral zone from the first game continued throughout the series as his tight gap play broke up numerous attempts from the opposition to generate offense. Duke’s coverage in the defensive zone was strong as his low center of gravity and strength allowed him to physically compete and win board and netfront battles against bigger opponents. His struggles in the defensive zone came when he or his partner regained possession of the puck and their lack of familiarity with each other resulted in turnovers at times.

 

[USA Hockey/Rena Laverty]

Final Word

The World Junior Summer Showcase Tournament basically accomplished what USA Hockey set out to do. They brought in 45 of the best junior hockey aged players and put them into uncomfortable situations on the ice to see how they would react. Some adjusted extremely well, others did not. As I look into the Crystal Puck to see who will be wearing the Red, White & Blue uniform with the USA letters sewn across their chest in Sweden after Christmas, here are my predictions: both Rutger McGroarty and Gavin Brindley played on the team last year and did nothing but enhance their value to the team this year, so they are locks. Frank Nazar III knew he had to come into this tournament and make a statement that he was 100% healthy and he could compete against the best… he did it. Count on him to be there as well.

On the blueline, Seamus Casey has the edge to be one of the 8 blueliners this year but I'm sure his play throughout the first few months of the season with Michigan will be monitored closely, especially his defensive zone play to see where he will be slotted into the lineup. Unfortunately for Tyler Duke, I foresee him being the odd-man out and I don't think it has anything to do with his play at the Showcase. With 12 of the 16 defensemen for the US at the WJSS being NHL draft selections, and Zeev Buium in the mix who is an early projection of being a top 10 pick in next year's draft (and a freshman at U of Denver where David Carle is the head coach and also the head coach of the US World Junior team), the undrafted Duke will likely be watching the World Juniors on his TV at home.