Toronto Maple Leafs 2024 fourth-round pick Victor Johansson has his eyes set on playing in the World Juniors with Team Sweden.
The 6-foot-1 defenseman is currently with his home country at the World Junior Summer Showcase in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The mini camp, which features Canada, the United States, Finland, and Sweden, spans one week, giving each country a good look at their prospects for the big tournament in December.
Johansson revealed at the Maple Leafs development camp in early July that he’d be attending the Summer Showcase, and already, Sweden has defeated USA Blue, USA White, and the full USA squad.
“It’s been great, actually. I’m really happy with my game. I think I’ve played well for it being the two first games,” Johansson told TSN’s Mark Masters at the camp. “I’m really happy with it and hopefully I can continue like this.”
Johansson is one of nine defenseman with Sweden in Minnesota for the event. The defenseman has developed a lot over the last year, admitting at Toronto’s development camp that adding weight has helped with the process.
Even Sweden’s U20 head coach, Magnus Havelid, has noticed the growth from Johansson over the last few months.
“Maybe a late bloomer, but he was really, really good with us in the national team in April. I can see now he’s growing, being stronger, being quicker,” Havelid told Masters. “It’s fantastic development. I’m looking forward to seeing him now in Leksands, it’s a competition, but I think he can surprise a lot of Leksands fans.”
The 2026 World Juniors will be held in St. Paul and Minneapolis, exactly where the Summer Showcase is being played. Sweden, Canada, the USA, and Finland will be four of the 10 teams participating in the event, which begins on Boxing Day.
Johansson, whose year-over-year growth is evident, says this opportunity is a big motivating factor for him to have a big season in Europe. The Linköping, Sweden-born player added that there’s going to be pressure that comes along with trying to make his home country’s team, too.
Team Sweden has two more games at the camp, against Canada on Friday and Finland on Saturday.
“You know that World Juniors is coming up and you got to keep on going, so it could be a little bit of pressure, but you got to handle that good and just continue to play our game and hopefully it ends up well,” Johansson smiled.
“Every kid wants to play, so it’s a dream come true if you can make it there. Hopefully, I can do pretty good by myself and hopefully I can take a spot.”
This article originally appeared on The Hockey News: 'I Think He Can Surprise A Lot Of Fans': Maple Leafs Prospect Victor Johansson Eyeing Spot On Sweden's World Junior Roster
(Top photo of Johansson: TSN.ca)