Maple Leafs prospects set for tall ask at World Juniors
Timothy Liljegren
Making his World Juniors debut, it has been a quiet but impressive debut for Liljegren in North America. It looked like the Leafs were going to send the 18-year-old back to Sweden after dealing with injuries in his draft year.
The Swedish defenceman missed last year’s tournament with mono and is joining a roster that is filled with a lot of talent including Dahlin, along with fellow 2017 first round picks; Alex Nylander, Elias Pettersson, Lias Andersson and Erik Brannstrom.
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The advantage the Liljegren has over some of his teammates is the experience of playing on the North American ice surface which is sometimes a adjustments for European players.
Liljegren has gotten off on the right foot with the Toronto Marlies with nine points in 17 games so far which is impressive for a defenceman at his young age.
GM Lou Lamoriello spoke about Liljegren’s progress this season saying that he has been impressed with his maturity and commitment to being a pro. This is what he had to say about what this tournament means for the young players an what benefit they can get out of it.
"“It exposes them to the best of their age group from around the world, and it gives you an opportunity to see how they compare,” he said. “It gives you an opportunity to see where their growth is, and what their potential is.”"
What may surprise people is how much growth there has been to Liljegren’s game where he has been impressing his Marlies’ teammates with his high-end skill.
There is no telling yet how Liljegen fits into Sweden’s plan for the World Juniors but he should get a chance to play in the top-four (Dahlin is expected to play the right side) and on the powerplay. The important thing for Liljegren is that he uses his slick passing ability to set up a highly-talented forward group on Sweden and be an elusive player with the puck and that will allow him to flourish.
Sweden opens the tournament against Belarus on Boxing Day at 2:00p.m. ET then plays the remainder of the preliminary round against the Czech Republic on the 28th at 4:00p.m. ET then plays Switzerland on the 30th at 2:00p.m. ET and Russia on the 31st at 8:00p.m. ET.