Photo credit: Dan Hickling
There is a lot of hype around Team Sweden this year, and Maple Leafs prospect Victor Johansson is expected to be part of it, but his start has raised concerns.
The World Juniors are underway as we get the best of the best international junior players as they all battle to see who is the top nation in the world (at least for 2025-26) and we already had a thriller to start things off.
Victor Johansson absent from Team Sweden’s opening game
There’s a lot to be excited for regarding Team Sweden besides names like Stenberg and Viktor Eklund, as Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Victor Johansson is part of the team and with a strong performance could accelerate his path to the NHL.
However, it was his performance that drew concerns…or rather his lack thereof.
There’s certainly some firepower there with names like Boumedienne, and Sahlin-Wallenius however Johansson is more than capable of helping lead them to success as well.
There also is no apparent reason why Johansson was scratched, though it may just be a case of him rotating in and out depending on what head coach Magnus Havelid needs on a particular night.
Why Victor Johansson needs to play more in the World Juniors
This season, Johansson has five points in 13 games with IK Oskarshamm of the HockeyAllsvensken (Sweden’s second highest level of pro hockey) and is on loan there from Leksands IF where he has zero points in two games.
But over his career, he’s been fantastic. While only 19, he’s put up 47 points in 81 games for the J20 Nationell as part of Leksands’ academy program.
The team loaned him with the hope that he can get a lot more reps and fight for a spot on the team down the line, and give him a bit more momentum heading into the World Juniors.
Sweden still has games against Switzerland, Germany, and the United States coming up so there’s still loads of time for Johansson to come in and make an impact.
But if he doesn’t get into the tournament much then it’ll be a little disheartening for Johansson, who has struggled with criticism about his size and discipline but has worked incredibly hard to prove his doubters wrong. He needs to be playing and show that he’s not just talking himself up.
Toronto doesn’t have a lot of highly-touted defensive prospects, especially ones that have the playmaking and offensive potential of Johansson. Without getting a chance to see how he does against the top talent in the world, they can’t get a great handle on how he’ll be in the NHL.
So if Havelid wants to ensure that the next game he plays doesn’t go into the dying moments of the third period, then he should put Victor Johansson in the lineup and add some serious offensive power.
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Maple Leafs prospect Victor Johansson’s World Juniors start raises eyebrows
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