The Chicago Blackhawks have done a very good job drafting and developing in the short time centered around the start of their rebuild. They are a team that isn't quite ready to compete yet, as seen by how the season has progressed for them, but they are swiftly headed in that direction. Part of the future is the high draft picks and strong prospects that the team has acquired over the past number of years.
Someone like Connor Bedard has played for Team Canada, but Nick Lardis, despite scoring 71 goals in the OHL last season, didn't get the Team Canada World Junior invite. Marek Vanacker has found himself somewhere in the middle, but with a disappointing result.
It was announced that Vanacker, along with Seattle Kraken draft pick Jake O'Brien, were cut from the team. Vanacker is the OHL's leading scorer with 26 goals. Behind him has 22 goals. Vanacker has scored 26 goals in just 26 games and has 41 points.
The difficulty for some of the young players trying to make Team Canada this year is that there is so much good talent invited, and even some good ones who weren't. We're seeing a few prospects from the NHL go back to play in the tournament this season, and there could've been a few more who are too valuable to their NHL teams.
Vanacker is 19 years old, so this was his last chance to play for Team Canada at the World Juniors, but he'll follow the same path as Lardis and jump to the AHL, or even NHL quickly next season after finishing out his dominant OHL season with the Brantford Bulldogs.
Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game day coverage, player features, and more.