Petteri Rimpinen
The only goaltender to outshine George at last season’s event was Rimpinen, who was selected as the tournament’s best goaltender and named to the all-tournament team for his performances with Team Finland.
Rimpinen ranked second in the tournament last season, to George, with a .933 save percentage but his performances in net won a pair of games in the knockout round, leading Team Finland to the gold-medal game. Rimpinen was outstanding in that game, as he made 36 saves, forcing the contest into sudden-death overtime, but ultimately he and his teammates fell one goal short in the extra session. Rimpinen will get one more shot this winter as he’ll be the starting goaltender once again with Team Finland.
More on Rimpinen here from a conversation over the summer at LA Kings Development Camp.
Vojtech Cihar
Fresh off signing his entry-level contract with the Kings, Cihar is set to represent Czechia for his second appearance at the World Juniors. Cihar made the team last year as a draft-eligible player and has two seasons of eligibility remaining, including this one. Now a year older, with another season of professional hockey in Czechia under his belt, Cihar looks primed to play an enhanced role this time around after he was a depth player last winter.
Cihar, a second-round selection by the Kings this past June, has eight points (4-4-8) this season with Karlovy Vary HC in the Czech Extraliga, the top men’s hockey league in his native Czechia. It’s a statline that doesn’t look all that impressive, compared to some of the gaudier numbers you see in junior leagues, but Cihar is playing regularly against men, as opposed to his peers. The tournament should be a step down in competition and it’ll be interesting to see how Cihar can translate his experience against players his own age. One to watch for over the next couple weeks.