No Alex Tuch? No problem. Wild fans will still enjoy the WJC.

I think the first big question to ask is whether something's wrong with Alex Tuch. Unfortunately, we don't have much more to go on than stats, and his points-per-game has seemed to stagnated from his freshman season at Boston College. Since we don't know why he hasn't taken his production to another level, we spoke to someone who would know, Joshua Kummins of SBN College Hockey. Here are his thoughts on Tuch's play so far this season:

So, while it's disappointing that Tuch won't be showcased by Team USA later this month, it's not necessarily a red flag concerning Tuch's development. It must also be noted that other top prospects in Bracco and Kyle Connor (who is destroying the Big 10 as a freshman this season) were also left off the roster, so Tuch isn't the only weird exclusion.

While Tuch appears to be out of America's plans for the WJC, Wild fans still have more reason to watch the World Junior tournament than they have in the past three years. As Minnesota's Under-20 talent pool has dwindled since 2012, they've had less and less representation at the tournament. In 2012, they sent a whopping 6 players. The Wild had two of their players selected in 2013 and 2014, and last year Tuch was the only Wild player who touched the ice.

The first impression Wild fans got of 2014 fourth-round goalie Kaapo Kähkönen was him getting lit up for 6 goals in a Wild Development Camp scrimmage. It's too bad, because Kähkönen is looking very solid in Finland, posting a .921 Sv% in the SM-Liiga as a 19-year old. Kähkönen actually made Finland's roster last season, but didn't play a minute. Given that he's now the oldest goalie on Finland's roster, that should change, and Kähkönen will get a rare second chance to make a first impression.

No Tuch means that this year's big draw for Wild fans will be Joel Eriksson Ek. Erkisson Ek's performance has been very good for an 18-year-old in the Swedish Elite League (3G, 5A in 21 GP), but it's hard to get a sense of how Eriksson Ek stacks up against other prospects when he plays almost exclusively against older competition. Now we'll finally get a sense of how his game- which features a great shot and good two-way play- stacks up against elite players in his age group.

So don't despair about Tuch, Wild fans. If nothing else, Tuch's absence will give you a chance to focus on some great Wild prospects that you may otherwise have glanced over.