Shane Wright Aims to Be a 'Difference-Maker' Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MTk0MzAxNzc3MzEzNTM5NTg5/usatsi_19342656.jpg] Update: Dylan Guenther has been loaned to Team Canada's world juniors squad, the Arizona Coyotes announced Thursday. He joins Shane Wright and Brandt Clarke in being loaned to the Canadian squad. The story has been updated. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- While it was expected, the Seattle Kraken have officially loaned center Shane Wright to Canada’s under-20 team for the World Junior Championship. The Los Angeles Kings have also loaned defender Brandt Clarke to the team as well, giving the Canadian squad a boost on the back end. Dylan Guenther has also been loaned to the team by the Arizona Coyotes, giving the Canadians a trio of players with NHL experience this season on their roster. Wright, 18, was the Kraken’s fourth overall pick in the 2022 NHL draft, sliding to the Kraken after being widely considered the favorite to go first overall. Wright has struggled to consistently get into Seattle’s lineup, averaging just 8:29 of ice time while getting into just eight of the team’s 25 games. Wright was sent to the AHL on a conditioning stint recently, scoring four goals in five games before being recalled to the Kraken. He played one game since being recalled and scored his first NHL goal against the Montreal Canadiens who passed on him at first overall. He was the captain of the 2021 IIHF Under-18 team, winning gold and finishing second in team scoring. Wright was on the 2022 World Junior Championship team before the tournament was cancelled last year but was not on the team in the rescheduled summer tournament as he prepared for his first NHL season. Clarke, 19, has been with the Kings this season, playing in nine games for the club and being sent to the AHL for a five-game conditioning stint as well. Clarke managed two assists in the NHL and a goal and an assist at the AHL level. Clarke, the eighth overall selection of the 2021 NHL draft, was controversially left off the World Junior Championship team last winter and again in the summer but looks as if he will play a larger role this upcoming tournament. Guenther, 19, is the most surprising addition of the three as he has played in 21 games this season for the Coyotes. The winger will provide the team with another high level scorer at the world juniors. His 11 points this season position him as a top-10 rookie scorer for this season. The ninth overall pick for the Coyotes was on the roster for the cancelled World Junior Championship last winter. Like Wright, Guenther did not return in the summer as he prepared for the start of his NHL career in Arizona. The World Junior Championship will be an excellent opportunity for Wright and Clarke to get their feet back under them and play consistent and important minutes for a team vying for the gold medal. Guenther has the most NHL experience of the three, which could make him a threat to find himself near the top of the scoring list at the tournament’s end. Wright will likely take one of the team’s top-six center roles while Guenther should find a role on the wing near the top of the lineup. Clarke slots into Canada’s top four on the blueline. All three have a chance to be leaders and play drivers at the U20 level and will be welcome additions to the Canadian world junior squad.
