A Flyers fan’s guide to the World Junior Championships

Flyers general manager Ron Hextall wasn’t among those to be selected to Team Canada for the World Junior Championships when he was a teenager.

The event has ramped up quite a bit since back then, and he doesn’t envy the pressure. Hextall has seven Flyers draft picks participating in the 2016 tournament.

“The stakes are high,” Hextall said. “You’re seeing kids at really the pinnacle of their year, the highest competition they play all year and the highest stakes. It’s just valuable information. It’s great. It’s a great experience for the kids. If it’s Canada, you’re not just playing for a jersey and for your family and your city. You’re literally playing for the country. There’s a lot of pressure on those kids. If you can handle that, you can handle anything.”

Two Flyers first-round picks will be have the weight of Canada on their shoulders — 2014’s Travis Sanheim and 2015 selection Travis Konecny — as they try to repeat as champions.

The Flyers will also have two from Sweden, goalie Felix Sandstrom and forward Oskar Lindblom, participating in the tournament. Russians Ivan Provorov and Radel Fazleev will be in it, too, with Czech Republic-born David Kase.

Here’s a rundown of each prospect with thoughts from Flyers director of scouting Chris Pryor.

Travis Sanheim, defenseman, Canada

Age: 19

Height/Weight: 6-foot-4, 198 pounds

Draft: 2014, first round, 17th overall

This season: 8 goals, 23 assists, 24 games (Calgary Hitmen/Western Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “The defenseman is having a really good year. He got hurt there a little bit and got off track. Their team’s been probably average for their liking, but the kid’s been well. Even with the injury, he’s second in defensemen in scoring in the West(ern Hockey League). That speaks volumes of his offensive productivity. His game’s been really good. We’re happy with how he’s developed.”

Travis Konecny, right wing, Canada

Age: 18

Height/Weight: 5-foot-10, 174 pounds

Draft: 2015, first round, 24th overall

This season: 7 goals, 38 assists, 29 games (Ottawa 67s/Ontario Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “He’s a versatile guy. He can play a number of different roles for that team and they’re aware of him with his history in Team Canada. They know the kid. They know what he’s gonna bring and the qualities that we’ve seen a little bit that he’s a really good kid.”

Oskar Lindblom, right wing, Sweden

Age: 19

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 192 pounds

Draft: 2014, fifth round, 138th overall

This season: 5 goals, 13 assists, 27 games (Brynas/Swedish Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “He’s playing in the top league over there and doing really well. For a young guy, I think he’s close to tops in the league from a plus-minus standpoint. That gives him credit where it’s due because he plays a two-way game and he plays the game the right way, which is what we like about him.”

Felix Sandstrom, goalie, Sweden

Age: 18

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 192 pounds

Draft: 2015, third round, 70th overall

This season: 6-5 record, 2.80 goals-against average, .905 save percentage (Brynas/Swedish Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “I guess maybe from an optics standpoint maybe from afar he’s going upwardly. Joakim (Grundberg), our scout over there, has seen him quite a bit. They put him in a situation there where their big guy was kind of off to a little bit slow start. They put Felix in and he responded. You gotta remember, that league over there is a good league, the men’s elite league. That’s a big jump for a young kid and he’s done really well.”

Ivan Provorov, defenseman, Russia

Age: 18

Height/Weight: 6-foot-1, 201 pounds

Draft: 2015, first round, seventh overall

This season: 7 goals, 21 assists, 30 games (Brandon Wheat Kings/Western Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “Ivan’s Ivan. That’s a complement. You know what you’re gonna get day in and day out. He’s an anchor on that Brandon team right now and I think right now he’s seventh in the league in scoring from a defenseman standpoint, which speaks about his offensive game, but some of the things that you don’t see day in and day out is a complement to the way he plays the game. He’ll be on that team as he was last year and he’ll be a big contributor. They need him.”

Radel Fazleev, right wing, Russia

Age: 19

Height/Weight: 6-foot-1, 176 pounds

Draft: 2014, sixth round, 168th overall

This season: 14 goals, 28 assists, 33 games (Calgary Hitmen/Western Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “He leads that (Calgary) team in scoring. I’d think they’d take a strong look at him (for the Russian team at the World Junior Championships in Helsinki, Finland). I’d be mildly surprised if they don’t take him. They usually bring an older group and he fits into that group. He can play a number of different roles, play center, play wing. He can give you scoring and plays a two-way game. ”

David Kase, right wing/center, Czech Republic

Age: 18

Height/Weight: 5-foot-11, 170 pounds

Draft: 2015, fifth round, 128th overall

This season: 1 goal, 15 games (Piráti Chomutov/Czech Hockey League)

Pryor’s thoughts: “He’s always been a big contributor for the Czechs. It hurts them not having (David) Pastrnyk there with Boston. I would think they’re gonna depend on him and some others to help that team. He’s played with the men this year. Sometimes those kids go with the men and don’t get a lot of ice time. They’ve been shuttling back and forth with the big team and the junior team, but they know him really well. They’ve had him on their teams.”

Dave Isaac; (856) 486-2479; disaac@gannettnj.com .

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