Penguins Prospect Raivis Ansons To Compete at World Juniors
Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Raivis Ansons is set to represent Latvia at the World Junior Championships.
Most years, August is a barren wasteland on the hockey calendar. Fortunately for fans of the sport, the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championships will help bridge the gap between free agent frenzy and the opening of NHL training camps. The Pittsburgh Penguins' lone representative this year is Latvian forward Raivis Ansons.
A fifth-round selection of the Penguins in 2020, Ansons looks to build onto what has become a banner year for him. The 20-year-old forward is coming off a good season with the QMJHL's Saint John Sea Dogs, where he notched 36 points (12-24) in 37 games and helped his team win their second Memorial Cup in franchise history.
Ansons most recently competed in Penguins development camp in July, receiving a glowing review from Penguins' director of player development Tom Kostopoulos. "He does things on the ice that don't always get noticed but are essential to winning," Kostopoulos said. "He just does all these little things well... I'm really excited about Raivis."
This tournament was initially scheduled to begin its normal time in late December of 2021 but was pushed back due to issues surrounding COVID-19. Penguins goalie prospect Joel Blomqvist was set to play for Finland in December but was unable to make the cut this time around. Blomqvist told Taylor Haase of DK Pittsburgh Sports that he was left off the roster for prioritizing his NHL career over the national program.
The 20-year-old netminder enjoyed a breakout season with Kärpät of the Finnish Elite League. In 20 games last year, Blomqvist had a .940 save percentage and allowed 1.32 goals per game in 20 games. He made his North American debut with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins in April, making 25 saves on 27 shots in a 3-1 loss to the Springfield Thunderbirds.
The 2022 World Junior Championships will begin on August 9th with a matchup between Team Slovakia and Team Czechia at 2:00 pm EST. Ansons and Team Latvia will open their tournament later that day at 4:00 pm Eastern against Team Finland.
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