It will be the game within the game tonight.
Canada vs. Sweden for the gold.
Canadian John Tavares vs. Swede Victor Hedman for the right to be first overall in the draft.
They have been touted for a couple of years as the favourites to be top pick at this summer's draft in Montreal and what has happened here and will happen tonight will help scouts make up their minds who should get the honour of being picked first overall.
The primary focus of both of them, of course, is winning tonight.
"My attitude is the same. My only goal is to win gold," said Hedman.
"My focus is on doing what I have to do to make my team successful," said Tavares.
Team Canada coach Pat Quinn and Swedish coach Par Marts said they think all the attention put on the Tavares-Hedman sideshow has had the potential to be a distraction.
"It's not a Hedman-Tavares thing," said Quinn yesterday. "I can't control John. Whatever is in his head is there, but he's very much been a team guy."
Scouts are of the opinion Tavares has elevated himself to top status with his play this season with the Oshawa Generals of the OHL and a strong showing through the preliminary round of the WJC.
"I had Hedman ahead of Tavares in October, but it's the other way around now," one scout told Sun Media.
Tavares put on a spectacular show with a hat trick against the Americans Wednesday. He has the potential to be the centrepiece of a team's offence.
Hedman has not been a dominant player here. He hasn't been involved on the offensive side of the puck as much as scouts would have liked to have seen. But his potential is his great appeal. Big in stature and a gifted skater, he has the tools to be the type of player around which a team could build its blue line for years to come.
The other factor that could influence the identity of the top pick is a team's needs. If the Tampa Bay Lightning, for instance, which already has the likes of Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and added Steven Stamkos with the top pick last summer, has the top choice, it might opt for Hedman. That would give the Lightning the blueline stud it lacks.
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JOHN TAVARES
Position: Centre
Number: 19
Born: Sept. 20, 1990 (18)
Hometown: Oakville
Height: 6 feet
Weight: 203 lbs.
WJC stats: 5GP, 8G, 6A, +7
The Skinny: He received "exceptional status" and was allowed to enter the OHL draft at 14 in 2005...He was taken first overall in the OHL draft by the Oshawa Generals ... Broke Wayne Gretzky's OHL record for goals by a 16-year-old with 72 in 67 games ... He had 25 goals and 52 points in 31 games with Oshawa before leaving for the national junior team...Strength is from the blue line in...Scouts wonder if his skating is good enough to make him an impact player at the NHL level ... Leads the WJC in goals (eight) and points (14).
Quote: "He sees the game like Sidney Crosby, but he doesn't have the same skating ability." -- NHL scout
VICTOR HEDMAN
Position: Defenceman
Number: 4
Born: Dec. 18, 1990 (18)
Hometown: Ornskoldsvik, Sweden
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 220 lbs.
WJC stats: 5 GP, 0 G, 2 A, +5
The skinny: He's playing his second year in the Swedish Elitserien with MoDo ... Has been compared to Anaheim Ducks star Chris Pronger, which is unfair. Hedman hasn't shown the same kind of mean streak ... Swedish star Peter Forsberg recently said Hedman will be the best defenceman out of Sweden since Nik Lidstrom ... Comes from the same hometown as Forsberg, the Sedin twins and Markus Naslund ... He has 10 points in 25 games with MoDo, playing in the top pair and averaging about 20 minutes a game ... His strength is his skating. He's one of the best skaters in the upcoming draft ... Decision making and getting involved in the play offensively have been shortcomings in this tournament.
