RICHMOND HILL, Ont. — At just 19-years-old, it’s safe to say that Ryan Tverberg has already made quite the name for himself across the hockey community.

Drafted in the 7th round of the 2020 NHL Draft, Tverberg flew under the radar for some time before getting picked up by the Leafs with the team’s last pick in the draft.

Prior to getting drafted with the 213th overall pick, the dynamic forward experienced monumental success in the 2019-20 season playing for the Toronto Jr. Canadians of the Ontario Junior Hockey League. Piling up 51 points (26 goals – 25 assists) in just 47 games with the program, Tverberg earned himself a spot on the OJHL All-Prospect first team and even took home the OJHL Top Prospect Award.

While he was slated to start the following 2020-21 campaign with the Alberni Valley Bulldogs of the British Columbia Hockey League, the season was unfortunately cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Luckily, Tverberg was able to take his talents elsewhere and further hone in on his game with the University of Connecticut.

The Richmond Hill product officially joined UConn a semester early in 2020, playing for the Huskies during the 2021 spring semester. In that time, he saw action in 14 games, making an immediate impact posting seven points (four goals and three assists) and successfully working his way into the starting rotation.

Despite his success in the OJHL, when Tverberg first arrived on campus in Dec. 2020, even the team’s head coach Mike Cavanaugh wasn’t entirely familiar with the young Canadian;

“I didn’t know much about him. Joe (Pereira) has seen him play live,” Cavanaugh said. “The only thing I saw was him – on video – play a couple games in the BCHL.”

Now an established player with the program in just his second season, Tverberg has evolved into a go-to scoring option for the Huskies. Through 14 games in 2021, he’s built upon his success from the year prior reeling in 16 points (nine goals and seven assists), and cementing himself as more of a physical threat on the ice.

“He’s a goal scorer,” Cavanaugh said. “Ryan can come off the wing and beat you clean with his shot. He’s not afraid to go into the dirty areas and get rebound goals and deflections and those types of things. He’s a great scorer, but he’s also a terrific penalty killer. And I think one of the things that attracted him to Canada was his speed. If you ask him to be on the fourth line, he’ll play physical and play an energy role.”

Thanks to Tverberg’s breakout 2021 campaign, the Richmond Hill native was one of 35 players invited to Canada’s National Junior Team Selection Camp in Dec. 2021 and becoming just one of three college players to get called up to Team Canada for the 2022 World Juniors with the other two being Owen Power, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, and Kent Johnson, who was the No. 5 overall pick.

Despite getting off to a brilliant start with the Huskies over the past 12 months, the news came as a bit of a surprise to the 19-year-old centreman.

“I was honestly ecstatic about it. Not too many people can come by that,” Tverberg said. “It was just kind of shocking because earlier that day I found that the US wasn’t going to work because I didn’t play there growing up so I was ineligible for theirs. So I kind of didn’t know and then to go to Canada’s camp, it’s great because it’s a winning tradition – always a tradition of being the best.”

However, if there’s anyone that might be even more excited than Tverberg for the invitation, it’s the Leafs’ front office. Most notably Toronto’s senior director of player development, Hayley Wickenheirser.

“It’s a huge confidence boost – an invite to a world junior camp when maybe it wasn’t something that was expected,” Wickenheiser said. “For a kid like Ryan, what’s so interesting or so nice to see is that he put in a whole summer of training with our staff in Toronto on a day-to-day basis, training with Leafs players, Marlies players. He’s got quite a bit better, and then to go to school and have just a great start like he had, it’s just a testament to his work ethic.”

Perhaps the most astounding factor to consider is that Canada’s World Junior team tends to skew heavily towards players that compete in major junior. Even though fellow first-rounders, Owen Power and Kent Johnson did also get the nod despite playing for the University of Michigan.

Although, this was expected given their status and where they landed in the 2021 NHL Draft, whereas Ryan Tvergberg, the last pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, came as a total shock to most.

While it was Tverberg’s numbers with the University of Connecticut that likely caught the attention of Hockey Canada, he never would have gotten the invite had it not been for his improved physical play and defense. Obviously, his incredible speed and skill is what most people are familiar with, but he’s made some big-time defensive plays this season that has forced those around him to take notice.

Despite the resounding confidence echoed throughout both the Leafs’ front office and UConn’s coaching staff, Ryan Tverberg did not make the final cut for Canada’s World Junior team.

With that being said, given the impact that COVID-19 has had on various leagues including the World Juniors, if one of the players on Canada’s roster is unable to go when the tournament resumes, expect Ryan Tverberg will be one of the first players to get the call up.

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