Down on the Farm: Wild is well-represented at upcoming World Juniors

As Christmas approaches, the World Junior Championships can't be far behind. Wild fans with or without a rooting interest in terms of which country they'll be behind will have a number of different prospects to follow along with once the tournament drops the puck Dec. 26 in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta.
Ten countries will be represented at the annual event, which was held in a bubble last year at Rogers Place in Edmonton, which is one of the two sites for this year's tournament as well.

The United States won the 2021 event, beating Canada in the gold medal game by a 2-0 margin. Finland defeated Russia 4-1 in the bronze medal matchup.
In this year's tournament, host Canada will highlight Group A play in Edmonton, along with Finland, Germany, the Czech Republic and Austria, while the United States will spearhead Group B play in Red Deer with Russia, Sweden, Slovakia and Switzerland.
Relegation round play commences Jan. 2, 2022 ahead of the semifinals Jan. 4. The gold and bronze medal games will be played Jan. 5 in Edmonton. A complete schedule for the tournament can be
found here
.
The Wild will be well represented at this year's tournament, with six prospects set to skate for their respective countries.
Defensemen Ryan O'Rourke and Carson Lambos will suit up for Canada while fellow blueliner Jack Peart was a late addition to the United States' roster.
Up front, the Wild has Pavel Novak skating for the Czech Republic and Marat Khusnutdinov will play for Russia.
The Wild also has goaltender Jesper Wallstedt slated to play for Team Sweden.
Half of those six were selected by the Wild in the 2020 NHL Draft (O'Rourke, Novak and Khusnutdinov) while Wallstedt, Lambos and Peart made up Minnesota's top three selections from the 2021 NHL Draft.
Here's an update on how each of the six players representing the Wild at the upcoming World Junior Championships is faring this season in the latest edition of Down on the Farm, presented by Just Bare:

Marat Khusnutdinov

Position: Forward
Age: 19
Height: 5-11
Weight: 175
Country: Russia
Draft: 2020, Second Round (37th overall)
2021-22 team/league: SKA St. Petersburg/KHL
2021-22 stats: 29 games (4-7=11)
Bomber's breakdown:"He's had a really good season. He's played a really big role at times for SKA and as a 19-year-old, on that team, that's pretty impressive. He plays in every situation and played a lot of minutes there, especially early in the season.
"We're really high on him. Very good speed and that speed allows him to play a 200-foot game. Always on the right side of the puck and he can play both center and wing. He's been playing wing there, predominantly, for the whole season with SKA. We like him as a center because of his speed and his ability to play all 200 feet. But we're excited about him. He's had a very good season and we expect him to show very well at the World Juniors." - Brad Bombardir, Wild Director of Player Development

Carson Lambos

Position: Defense
Age: 18
Height: 6-1
Weight:196
Country:Canada
Draft: 2021, First Round (26th overall)
2021-22 team/league: Winnipeg Ice/WHL
2021-22 stats: 19 games (5-13=18)
Bomber's breakdown:"He was hurt for the previous three weeks leading into the World Junior camp, so he hadn't played in the previous three weeks, and I give him so much credit because he was so focused off the ice and in his preparation for the camp. He did everything that he possibly could to get himself ready, prepared and healthy to go to Canada's camp. I was at that camp and watched our guys play, and. thought Carson was one of the best performing defensemen in that camp. And that's a lot to be said for a kid who sat out the three weeks prior and had no game experience in those three weeks.
"He does a really good job with his gaps and he's a gamer. Sees the game really well."

Pavel Novak

Position: Forward
Age:19
Height: 5-9
Weight: 170
Country: Czech Republic
Draft: 2020, Fifth Round (146th overall)
2021-22 team/league: Kelowna Rockets/WHL
2021-22 stats: 24 games (13-18=31)
Bomber's breakdown:"He leads [Kelowna] in points and goals, he's got a shooter's mentality and we like that about him. He likes to deliver pucks to the net and he's pretty effective at it so that's what he's going to have to do, certainly for the rest of the season in Kelowna, and at the World Juniors.
"The big thing for him is, he needs to continue playing with speed. He's always gotta be on the move because he's not a big kid, so he's gotta find those little pockets where he can get pucks and make himself available offensively and then deliver pucks to the net. That's his knack, and that's what he's good at. All these teams want these kids to come in and play to their strengths, and that's something that Pav is going to have to do for them." - Bombardir

Ryan O'Rourke

Position: Defense
Age: 19
Height: 6-1
Weight:180
Country: Canada
Draft: 2020, Second Round (39th overall)
2021-22 team/league: Soo Greyhounds/OHL (captain)
2021-22 stats: 21 games (3-16=19)
Bomber's breakdown: "He's been a captain the last couple years, and that's pretty impressive. He was given the 'C' at 17 years old, so when you have a captain who is that age, they have 20-year-olds playing in that league and you have a 17-year-old as your captain, that says a lot. It's been good for him to go back [to the Soo]. We watched him play at the American Hockey League level last season ... and that's just a different league. You're playing against men in that league, and some of those guys, you see them differently as players at that age, playing in the American League. And now you watch him go back and play with his peers and he's had a very good season. He's the leader of that team.
"He's really competitive. Loves to compete, loves to play on the edge. Hopefully we see that at the World Juniors from him, I would expect he'll play a shutdown role there when he gets his opportunity to play, and we're looking forward to seeing him play that role there." - Bombardir

Jack Peart

Position: Defense
Age: 18
Height: 5-11
Weight: 185
Country:United States
Draft: 2021, Second Round (54th overall)
2021-22 team/league:St. Cloud State University/NCAA
2021-22 stats: 12 games (2-8=10)
Bomber's breakdown: "We were very happy that they found a way to at least add him to the camp and then knowing Jack , we're not shocked at all that he went there and made the team a few days later. The kid is a gamer and he's so competitive. We really like his game. He's such a smooth player, smooth at retrieving pucks, getting them going north out of the defensive zone and he's got a really good hockey IQ. Just smooth feet and calm, controls the puck really well, even on the offensive blueline. He's got a real good feel to the game.
"We're just so happy that he'll have this opportunity and we give him all the credit because he went to that camp and he forced himself onto that team by how he performed. And rightfully so, he's been a really good player for St. Cloud so far this season." - Bombardir

Jesper Wallstedt

Position: Goaltender
Age:19
Height:6-3
Weight: 215
Country: Sweden
Draft: 2021, First Round (20th overall)
2021-22 team/league: Lulea HF/SHL
2021-22 stats: 17 games (9-8-0, 1.82, .923)
Bomber's breakdown:"We weren't quite sure of the amount of games he'd play, especially early on in the season. He's just 19 years old and for a goaltender that age, to play in the SHL, it's not that typical. We're extremely pleased about that opportunity and about him taking advantage of that opportunity that he's been given. He's just had a really solid season and you'd be pretty hard pressed historically to find another goalie in the SHL, at that age, that has had the amount of games he's played and the numbers he's been able to post. Certainly not perfect, he's got some areas to work on, but he plays for a very well-coached team, so that helps.
"They don't score a ton [in front of him], but to be honest, in our discussions this summer, we thought that was a benefit for him because he'd be challenged in these games and he'd be playing in a lot of tight-scoring games. He's had to do that at times, and a lot of games in that league are like that. So for us, that's a plus for him to be in those high-pressure games for his development." - Bombardir