As one of the final international U20 tune-ups before the World Juniors begin in December, the tournament, which ended on Nov. 11, featured some of the top young talent in Finland, Sweden, Russiaand the Czech Republic, including Panthers 2017 second-round pick Aleksi Heponiemi (Finland) and 2018 first-round pick Grigori Denisenko (Russia).

The Florida Panthers are looking ahead to the 2019 World Junior Championship with sizeable expectations after a pair of recent high-round draft picks dominated the world stage at the Four Nations Tournament in Hodonin, Czech Republic.

Bryan McCabe, the Panthers Director of Player Personnel, was on hand to observe both.

"I was lucky enough to be over to see them play, and they both performed extremely well," McCabe recently told FloridaPanthers.com. "They both had really, really good tournaments."

Heponiemi, 19, posted a team-leading five points (two goals, three assists) to lead Finland to a perfect 3-0-0 record and tournament win. Teaming up with Rasmus Kupari, a first-round pick of the Los Angeles Kings this past summer, the duo was nearly unstoppable on the power play.

Tweet from @FINjrhockey: Good puck movement from K��rp��t on this power play goal, #LAKings Rasmus Kupari and #FlaPanthers Aleksi Heponiemi with the assists. Heponiemi currently has 14 assists, tied for most in the #Liiga. pic.twitter.com/UfpRCyfKD9

"His creativity is something you can't teach," McCabe said of Heponiemi. "He has the ability to draw players in and then find guys with speed going to the hard areas. He's been very successful with that. He's obviously off to a great start in the men's league in Finland."

Like Heponiemi, Denisenko finished tied for the tournament scoring lead with five points. The only difference, however, is that all of his came in the same game, when the 18-year-old notched three goals and two assists to lead Russia to a 6-5 win over the Czech Republic.

Russia finished the tournament 2-1-0, with their only loss coming to Heponiemi's Finns.

Tweet from @TheDraftAnalyst: #U20: This was an absolute bullet off the stick of Grigory Denisenko (FLA 1st/2018) that made it 2-1 Russia. pic.twitter.com/mBAgGmHtlb

"Denisenko was electric, to say the least," McCabe said. "He created a lot offensively. He's got a great shot and is quick in transition. He really had a good showing over there. I would expect him to perform very well for Russia at the World Juniors."

Denisenko, who plays for Yaroslavl Lokomotiv in the KHL, spent the majority of last season in the MHL, Russia's top junior league, recording 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 31 games. In the playoffs, he potted five goals in 12 games to lead Loko Yaroslavl to a league championship.

At 5-foot-11 and 176 pounds, Denisenko has spent time in both the KHL and MHL this season, recording one goal and two assists in four games with Yaroslavl's junior club and three goals in 15 games with their pro team. At the Junior Club World Cup, he had four points in five games.

"He's explosive, and that's exactly what we drafted him for," Panthers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Dale Tallon said. "It was a need that we had on the wing. He plays with great intensity and speed. He's got high skill, but also some physicality to his game as well. It's just a matter of time before he makes his mark."

Like Denisenko, Heponiemi is also putting his size to the test against grown men for the first this season. After registering an astronomical 204 points (56 goals, 148 assists) in just 129 regular-season games over two seasons with Swift Current in the WHL, it was clearly time for a change.

Listed at 5-foot-10 and 148 pounds - although it's believed he's packed on some size since his last official weigh-in - Heponiemi is proving that skill trumps size during his first season back in his native country's top pro circuit, Liiga. In 21 games with first-place Karpat, which captured the league championship last season, he is tied for the team's scoring lead with 18 points (four goals, 14 assists) - the most among Liiga rookies.

A gifted and creative playmaker, Heponiemi's 14 assists are also tied for the league lead.

"The concern with him was the size, but that's not an issue anymore," Tallon said. "He's gotten a lot stronger, but it hasn't affected his skills and his vision and his ability to make plays. He's a multi-dimensional player."

But has the ease of Heponiemi's transition from the junior to pro ranks surprised Tallon?

Of course not.

"It might be even easier for him playing better players or more veteran players," he said. "He sees his teammates so well. He's so unselfish, is a great passer and has really great vison."

Looking ahead, Tallon said he is excited to see how both prospects perform at next month's World Juniors in Vancouver, as both are projected to make their country's tournament rosters.

"It'd be great to see," said Tallon, who will attend the annual tournament. "I hope they make their teams and excel when they're there."