These draft eligibles were analytical standouts at the World Juniors

The 2025 World Juniors has come to a close.

For some — Team USA, for example — it’s time to celebrate.

For others, it’s time for some additional homework.

James Hagens dominated the tournament with nine points (five goals, four assists) in seven games en route to helping the Americans to gold, but what did the underlying analytics tell us about his performance? What other members of the 2025 NHL Draft class stood out? 

Using SportContracts advanced analytics, we looked at what forwards and defenders stood out in the tournament. 

Hagens paces forwards

Hagens finished first in slot passes (12), second in expected goal primary assists per 60 (0.7), and third in controlled zone entries per 60 (19.5), controlled zone entry percentage (80%), and expected goal contributions off the rush per 60 (0.4). He had an excellent tournament, where he could have pushed for his case to regain the No. 1 spot atop draft boards after falling to No. 2 in FCHockey’s Winter ranking for the 2025 draft.

Bruno Osmanis also deserves some mention. Playing for a Latvian team who was expected to be an easier matchup for most teams in the tournament, they managed to upset Canada and Germany. Osmanis played a role in that, finishing in the top three amongst eligibles in two categories — primary shot assists per 60 (2nd; 16.5) and expected goal primary assists per 60 (T-3rd; 0.5). 

Victor Eklund had a strong tournament for Sweden, too. Eklund finishing in the top three in multiple categories, including first in expected goals against per 60 minutes (1.2), a dominant figure. Eklund also ended up ranked third in slot passes (7), expected goal contributions off the rush per 60 (0.4), and in shooting expected goals per 60 (1.2). Eklund finished the tournament with six points (two goals, four assists) in seven games. 

Luka Radivojevic shines on the blue line

Luka Radivojevic stood out amongst the current draft eligibles, over-agers, and future eligibles in terms of contributions from the blue line.

While he posted just two points — both assists — in five twirls in the tournament, the underlying stats showed Radivojevic was more impressive than the surface stats show. As a matter of fact, he was top three in three different categories. Radivojevic, who turned 18 during the tournament, finished tied for first in controlled zone exit percentage at 84%. He also finished tied for second in shooting expected goals per 60 (0.5). Finally, he finished third in controlled zone exits per 60 with 26.3. 

His ability to help breakouts is evident in his ability to generate successful exits, and while it did not lead to much scoring, he still proved instrumental in his minutes for Slovakia. Then, when his team got set up in the offensive zone, he proved to be a positive impact. He fired 15.2 shots per 60 minutes, compared to the team average down at 10.4. 

Defensively, he just missed out on the top three in defensive zone puck recovery rate at 62% (the cut-off for top-3 was 66%; the team average was 56%). He also narrowly missed out on the top three for expected goals against per 60, with 2.2 (the cut-off was 1.8; the team average was 3.6). 

Matthew Schaefer deserves a lot of love, too. He likely would have been the one selected as the standout had his tournament not been cut short through four periods after sustaining a broken clavicle against Latvia. 

Schaefer, over his extremely limited sample size, finished first in primary shot assists per 60 (23.3), expected goal primary assists (0.8), expected goal contributions off the rush (0.6), shooting expected goals (0.7), and expected goals per entry allowed (0.1). Yes, he absolutely crushed it compared to the other eligible defenders. Canada losing him early in the tournament really hurt their chances, and played a crucial role on an early exit. 

Nils Rhyn, a Swiss defender who netted one goal in five games, is a 19-year-old passed over in both the 2023 and 2024 drafts. He stood out defensively, finishing second in defensive zone puck recovery rate, at 67% and first in expected goals against per 60, at 1.4. What makes that even more impressive is the fact that his team averaged a 56% defensive zone recovery rate and a 3.6 expected goals against per 60 rate. Rhyn was stout in his own end on a Switzerland team that gave up the third-most goals against in the tournament at 22. 

Gavin McKenna stands out under the hood

The projected top pick for the 2026 draft had a strong showing, too, despite ending the tournament on a sour note.

Gavin McKenna, though finishing with just one goal in five games, was one of those bright spots.

McKenna was foirst in the tournament in primary shot assists — the pass that directly resulted in a shot on goal — per 60 minutes with 22.6. The next closest was down at 16.5, showing just how impactful he was as a passer. McKenna also finished second in the tournament in successful slot passes, defined as passes completed within the slot area, with nine. He also had 0.8 expected goal primary assists per 60 minutes. On top of that, he helped generate 0.5 expected goals per 60 minutes off the rush, placing him first. As a shooter, he generated 1.8 expected goals per 60 minutes, placing second. 

Outside of the offensive zone, McKenna also finished tied for second amongst undrafted players in controlled zone exit percentage at 85%, and was second in controlled entries per 60 minutes (19.6) and controlled zone entry percentage (83%). 

Suffice to say, McKenna played a whole lot better than what the surface stats suggest. His passing analytics were excellent, as were his transitional analytics. The puck just did not bounce his way.

• YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

• • • THESE 2025 NHL DRAFT ELIGIBLES IMPRESSED MOST AT THE WORLD JUNIORS
    • WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE 2025 NHLD RAFT CLASS AT THE WORLD JUNIORS
    • 2025 NHL DRAFT NOTEBOOK: WORLD JUNIORS EDITION
    • ROSTERS RELEASED FOR THE 2025 ALL-AMERICAN PROSPECTS GAME
    • THE BIGGEST RISERS IN FCHOCKEY’S WINTER RANKING FOR THE 2025 DRAFT