Most Intriguing Players to Watch at the 2016 IIHF World Championship

It's the best time of year to be a hockey fan.

Not only are the Stanley Cup playoffs are in full swing across the USA, another major event is also taking place halfway around the world.

Between May 6 and 22, teams from 16 countries are competing for the gold medal at the 80th IIHF World Championship, being held in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia.

Most years, the best players in the world remain deep in the hunt for the Stanley Cup when the World Championship takes place, but this year's tournament carries some extra levels of intrigue.

A number of first-round upsets freed up some top talents to extend their years over in Europe—some players with hopes of impressing their national team brass and grabbing a roster spot for September's NHL-sanctioned World Cup of Hockey event.

Also, Canada's fans have a horse in this race. Canadians are wild supporters of their national team every Christmas during the annual World Junior Championship and every four years at the Olympics. This year, they might be more inclined to tune into the World Championship and cheer for Team Canada rather than put their loyalty behind one of the eight American-based teams that are still duking it out for the Stanley Cup.

Finally, this year's World Championship tournament features two of the top prospects in June's NHL draft, offering fans a first look at how these talents perform against the men they'll be facing in the pro ranks next season.

Here are six of the most intriguing players to watch in the 2016 World Championship.

Auston Matthews: USA

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Where He Came From: A product of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, 18-year-old Auston Matthews spent the 2015-16 season with the ZSC Lions of Switzerland's National League A.

Matthews finished 10th in league scoring with 24-22-46 in 36 games, per HockeyDB.com, and was named to the All-Star Team at the 2016 World Junior Championship as part of Team USA's bronze medal-winning group, per IIHF.com.

Why He's Intriguing: Matthews is the top prospect in the 2016 NHL draft class, per ISS Hockey, but because he spent last season in the Swiss League, most North Americans haven't seen him play very much. The World Championship offers many the first opportunity to see Matthews show his stuff against the professional players that he'll most likely be facing in the NHL next season.

Impact So Far: After being held without a point in Team USA's opening game against Canada, Matthews picked up two goals and an assist on Saturday against Belarus, tying him for an early share of the tournament's scoring lead.

Patrik Laine: Finland

Dmitri Lovetsky/Associated Press

Where He Came From: Finland's Patrik Laine just turned 18 on April 19, but he spent the 2015-16 season with Tappara Tampere of the SM-liiga. Laine posted 17-16-33 in 46 regular-season games, then exploded with 10-5-15 in 18 postseason games and was named playoff MVP as Tappara captured the league championship, per Jason Cuthbert of The Score. 

Why He's Intriguing: Laine's stock has risen dramatically since Christmas, starting with his All-Star Team award as Finland captured gold at the 2016 World Junior Championship and on through his Finnish League Championship.

ISS Hockey has Laine ranked as the No. 3 draft prospect behind his fellow Finn Jesse Puljujarvi, but Puljujarvi played in the Under-18 Championship in North Dakota last month and is not part of the team in St. Petersburg. Laine has an excellent chance to move further up the ranks and assert himself as the best Finnish prospect in the draft.

Impact So Far: Laine started the World Championship on the right foot, picking up two goals and one assist in Finland's 6-2 opening-night win over Belarus. Like Auston Matthews, Laine is one of the tournament's early scoring leaders.

Connor McDavid: Canada

Dmitri Lovetsky/Associated Press

Where He Came From: This year's World Championship marks 19-year-old Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid's first appearance on a men's national team.

Chosen first overall in 2015, McDavid won gold for Canada at the 2015 World Junior Championship and in 2013 at the Under-18 Championship.

Why He's Intriguing: Though he missed 37 games due to a broken clavicle, McDavid tallied 48 points in 45 games with the Edmonton Oilers during his rookie NHL season, giving him the highest points-per-game ratio of any rookie who played more than 20 games at 1.07 points per game. 

Per NHL.com, McDavid has been named a finalist for the 2016 Calder Trophy, along with Artemi Panarin of the Chicago Blackhawks and Shayne Gostisbehere of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Impact So Far: McDavid was held without a point as Team Canada rode a balanced offensive attack to a 5-1 win over the U.S. in both teams' tournament-opener on Friday.

Pavel Datsyuk: Russia

Ivan Sekretarev/Associated Press

Where He Came From: Following ankle surgery during the summer of 2015, 37-year-old Detroit Red Wings mainstay Pavel Datsyuk put up 16-33-49 in 66 NHL games during the 2015-16 season. He was held without a point as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Red Wings in five games in the first round of the playoffs but, like most Russians, he quickly said yes to joining his national team for the World Championship in his home country.

Why He's Intriguing: Datsyuk has one year left on his contract with Detroit, but it was widely reported he may return to Russia as early as the 2016-17 season. Pavel Lysenkov of IIHF.com reported Datsyuk won't make a decision on his status for next year until after the World Championship is complete.

Impact So Far: The Czech team shut out Russia in the tournament-opener in Moscow. Datsyuk and his teammates have some work to do if they hope to bring glory home to Mother Russia in this tournament.

Corey Perry: Canada

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Where He Came From: Corey Perry finished second in team scoring with 34-28-62 as his Anaheim Ducks surged to the top of the Pacific Division during the second half of the NHL regular season. He managed just four playoff assists before the Nashville Predators upset his Ducks in the first round of the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Why He's Intriguing: As a two-time Olympic gold medalist from 2010 and 2014 and a 2007 Stanley Cup winner, Perry has a chance to join the exclusive Triple Gold Club if he can add a World Championship gold medal to his collection this month.

Perry's successful past international experience has earned the 30-year-old the Team Canada captaincy at this year's tournament—a role Sidney Crosby, who earned his Triple Gold status thanks to Canada's gold-medal performance in Prague, held last year.

Perry was not named to the initial 16-player roster for Team Canada's entry into September's World Cup of Hockey, so a good showing by Russia would help increase his chances of grabbing one of the team's final seven spots on June 1.

Impact So Far: Perry played a strong all-round game and picked up an assist in Canada's opening 5-1 win over the U.S.

Jacob Markstrom: Sweden

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Where He Came From: As Ryan Miller's backup with the Vancouver Canucks, Jacob Markstrom posted a 13-14-3 record during the 2015-16 season, with a 2.73 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage.

Though he was highly touted when the Florida Panthers drafted him in the second round in 2008, Markstrom has taken a long time to develop his game, only becoming a full-time NHLer last season.

Why He's Intriguing: Though he plays a backup role with the Canucks, Markstrom was the second goalie named to Sweden's preliminary roster for September's World Cup of Hockey, behind longtime stalwart Henrik Lundqvist.

Lundqvist struggled with the New York Rangers during the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, raising the possibility that Markstrom may end up seeing playing time in September's tournament if the King doesn't perform up to his usual high standards.

Impact So Far: Markstrom got the nod as the starter over former Edmonton Oilers goaltender Viktor Fasth for Sweden's first game in Moscow on Friday. Markstrom made 20 saves to give Sweden a 2-1 overtime win over Latvia.

All stats from IIHF.com and NHL.com unless otherwise indicated.