Starter is probably Gaudreau with Brennan and Beaupit backing up

I suspect that Wright will be in the NHL right away.

If not, then I would expect him and Bedard play together (Bedard on the wing) based on their chemistry in the U18s last year.

Johnston - Wright - Bedard would be one of the best lines the tournament has ever seen.

Pickering making the team just watch

Wright should make Seattle. So bump all centers up. But as always, id say canada is the favorite.

I think the best thing for Shane's development would be to go back and play one more year of Junior.

He had 1.5 years of Junior Development ripped away from him because of covid restrictions. He had his WJC ripped away from him because of covid restrictions. I really think the best thing for his development (and also, for him mentally) is to go back and play one more year of Junior/WJC/etc.

If you look at his progression over the last season, he caught up quickly. He has a mature size as well at 6'0" 200lbs.

He also only missed 1 year of OHL too, not 1.5 like you mentioned. He has played 121 out of a possible 136 OHL games over two normal seasons. Most draft prospects play less than this when you account for the time missed for the WJC and minor injuries.

He is done with the OHL and it would probably stall his progression if they were to send him back. Ideally, he would spend a year in the AHL but that isnt an option.

One possibility might be to have him play in Seattle until Christmas (about 30 games) and then let him go back to play the WJC and finish the year in the OHL. This would give him the development in the NHL, while also giving him the chance to gain the experience of winning at multiple levels (in my mind he would be traded to the OHLs top team loading up for the Memorial cup). In a perfect world he could even come back to the NHL at the end of the year if Seattle makes the playoffs somehow.