Canucks World Juniors Throwback 2: Russia

The 2025 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships are fast approaching, with exhibition matches starting as early as December 19. December 26 marks the first day of the tournament itself, and games will be played nearly every day until the gold medal game on January 5. To get into the World Juniors spirit, let’s take a look at some recent performances from Canucks prospects sorted by country. Here are some highlights from the past few years of Team Russia.

2022: Dmitri Zlodeyev

Zlodeyev was picked in the sixth round of the 2020 by the Canucks, but eventually returned to the KHL. He played 21 games with the Abbotsford Canucks last season, scoring one goal in that span of time. During the first part of the 2022 World Junior Championships, he played two games for Russia before the tournament was postponed due to multiple outbreaks of COVID-19 on different teams. Before the U20 teams met again in the summer, Russia was banned from partaking in IIHF competitions due to their invasion of Ukraine.

2021: Vasily Podkolzin

Podkolzin was the Canucks’ first round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, in a class that included names like Trevor Zegras, Cole Caufield, and Matt Boldy. While he is now a member of the Edmonton Oilers, having been traded for a fourth-round pick this offseason, Podkolzin took part in three World Juniors Championships. In 2021, he was named captain of the Russian team, and tallied two goals and two assists in seven games.

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2020: Vasily Podkolzin

In his second stint with Team Russia as part of the World Juniors, Podkolzin was named an alternate captain. As well, he had his most offensively-productive tournament with one goal and four assists in seven games. His team lost to Canada in a 4–3 heartbreaker.

2019: Vasily Podkolzin

Podkolzin’s first World Junior Championship saw him collect three assists in seven games. His team won a bronze medal by beating out Switzerland in front of the Vancouver crowd. In the same year, Podkolzin captained Team Russia to a silver medal in the U18 World Juniors.

2014: Nikita Tryamkin

Tryamkin was picked in the third round, 66th overall by the Canucks in the 2014 NHL Draft. He spent 79 games with Vancouver, split between the 2015–16 and 2016–17 regular seasons, and put up three goals and eight assists in that span. Since then, he has moved back to his old team, Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg of the KHL. In his seven games as a member of Russia’s U20 roster, he put up one goal and two assists and won a bronze medal.