The world juniors semifinals are set to feature the Sweden and Finland rivalry, while the USA will face a Czechia squad that eliminated Canada in the quarterfinal. Ryan Leonard [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAwMjg0ODk1NzMyMzExNDE2/usatsi_20963693_168400847_lowres.jpg] Ryan Leonard Ryan Leonard recognizes that Canadian fans do not like him. As the captain of Team USA at the world juniors, he's an obvious target for boos from rival fans, especially since he plays such a hard-nosed, boisterous game. So when the Americans were dousing the Swiss in the quarterfinal, Leonard was more than happy to be seen as the bad guy by the Canadian partisans in the stands. "You hear the boos and it kinda just made me smile, honestly," he said. "It's cool to be hated." Leonard had an eventful game against the Swiss, getting hit in the face twice (once from a high stick, once from a puck) and getting into several high-impact collisions with opponents. He also scored two goals in the 7-2 romp. For a kid who plays with a ton of passion, one of his best moves was something he didn't do, according to his coach - retaliate when the game was already out of hand. "To me, the sequence in the third where he gets knocked to the ice and just skates away, that's growth from him; his discipline, his maturity," said David Carle. "He's an emotional guy and our team rallies around that, but it wasn't the time and place to engage. So that's been fun to watch as a coach, his growth and maturity. You're seeing his game continue to blossom, but you're seeing the person on the ice being in more control and that's nice to see. It bodes well for his future." Drafted eighth overall by the Washington Capitals in 2023, the right winger has been a star for Boston College in his first season-and-a-half with the Eagles and he already has a gold medal from last year's world juniors, where he played on a potent line with Rangers pick Gabe Perreault and current San Jose rookie Will Smith. This year, potential first overall pick James Hagens has replaced Smith as the center for Leonard and Perreault at both Boston College and the world juniors. He's already quite familiar with the impact Leonard can make on a team, even when he's a target because of his own physicality. "He's a great player and everybody's going after him," Hagens said. "He's our leader, so you learn from him and how he battles through everything. You see what he goes through and how he's still ready to go out the next shift. So it helps you understand that you can never take a shift off and that you play for the guy next to you." Conversely, Leonard is more than happy with his new B.C. line and what they've been able to do so far in terms of chemistry and production. "My stick's always gotta be on the ice ready for a pass, from either of those guys," he said. "We have a couple plays you know you'll be ready for, whether it's a board pass or knowing where people are in the back of your head without even looking. Those tendencies that come with playing together all year long, it's been so fun." As for his approach to the captaincy with Team USA, Leonard has to be the same heart-on-his-sleeve player he's always been. "You're voted captain for a reason and it's because of who you were before, so you don't need to change too much," he said. "It has to come naturally." So far, that approach has paid a lot of dividends for Leonard in his burgeoning career - and keep in mind, he's just getting started.
