The puck drops for the 2015 World Junior Hockey Championship on Boxing Day and while its still 112 days away, Canadas challenge remains the same - figuring out which players may or not be available to Team Canada because of potential spots available on NHL rosters. The challenge was certainly there during the gold medal years, but the spoils of victory demonstrated the enormous depth of talent Team Canada could draw upon. Now going five years without a gold medal - not to mention two consecutive years without any medal at all, five countries winning gold in the past six years and this years tournament on home ice - Hockey Canadas challenge isnt any easier. And the expectations remain as high as ever. Starting today and at the start of each month going into the 2015 tournament, TSN will examine candidates for Team Canada leading up to the selection camp in December. A roster of 13 forwards, seven defencemen and two goaltenders will be tabled, along with other potential players who could challenge. And this list will certainly change as the season unfolds. The September edition allows us to look at all candidates prior to NHL training camp. For the initial roster, Jonathan Drouin is not listed because the belief that hell be in the NHL on Oct. 8 is very strong. Who are the other players Canada may be missing? As always, the players are ones that can have a significant impact on the team. Its one thing to understand who may be unavailable, but the challenge is actually identifying the players who can fill the void. First-overall NHL draft pick Aaron Ekblad will almost certainly be unavailable. Think back to the 2014 Mens Olympic Team when head coach Mike Babcock wanted balance between the left and right shots on the blue line. With the absence of Ekblad, that leaves one right shot defenceman - Madison Bowey - on the roster. Chris Bigras was on the World Junior Team last winter, but with the quality of players on the left side he may have to demonstrate a strong ability to play the right side. Jeremy Roy is a draft eligible player for next June - and is a very good player at that. His maturity is excellent and he may be able to challenge for a spot. Given that hes a right-handed shot, it could give this years team the balance theyre looking for. At forward, the potential for missing players is always at the top end of the lineup in terms of skill and impact. Possible returnees Sam Reinhart and Curtis Lazar lead the group and Max Domi was close to starting with the Phoenix Coyotes last season. Replacing Sam and Curtis is a significant challenge, because their impact has a wide-ranging effect. They can play all situations in the game, are versatile and can move throughout the lineup. Theyre also game changers and either one of them could be team captain. Meanwhile, Jake Virtanen is coming off shoulder surgery and his health may be a key factor in stepping into the void. He fits the bill of being a top-end talent with the skill to impact a game. The tricky part of the evaluation is identifying those players who can play outside their natural positions and contribute. Centre Robbi Fabbri had a fantastic playoff for the Guelph Storm and would be a leading candidate to step into a vacancy because hes shown a capability to play to his strengths - down the middle or on the wing. On the left side, Anthony Duclair is a tremendously talented player and when looking to replace a guy like Max Domi, it appears to be seamless with respect to his skill. Keep in mind that Sam Bennett and Connor McDavid have played alongside one another with great success, so this may be a natural fit. Brendan Lemieux brings a different element, but his ability to rise to the occasion in important games could see him fit in a different way - perhaps coming in from the bottom part of the roster as others push up. Canadas depth is strong, but replacing key performers is never easy. The expectations arent lower, but the task for the Team Canadas personnel is to form a team that meets those expectations - regardless of whos available or not. Adidas NMD R1 Clearance . "Its embarrassing what were doing here," leading scorer Phil Kessel said Wednesday. The most recent failed season came with even more pain than the six that preceded it. There was no hint of an impending implosion when the Leafs came roaring out of the all-star break with back-to-back games against Pittsburgh -- a 5-4 shootout loss followed by a 1-0 win the next night. Adidas NMD Factory Outlet . This was one of them. Omar Infante homered and tied a career high with six RBIs to carry the Kansas City Royals over the Baltimore Orioles 9-3 on Sunday. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/. Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Defensive Depth TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting the Toronto Maple Leafs have considerable interest in unrestricted free-agent defenceman Dan Boyle. Adidas NMD Discount . They say things like "stress is when you dont know what youre doing" and "I wasnt hired to motivate players, I was hired to coach motivated players." They ring as true now as they did when Mularkey heard them the first time playing tight end for the Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Fame coach 25 years ago. Fake NMD R1 For Sale . Knapp defeated American Alison Riske 6-3, 7-5 to secure Italys victory in the best-of-five series. She held a 5-2 lead in the second set, only to let Riske tie it at five. ASHBURN, Va. -- Donte Stallworth was cut Monday by the Washington Redskins, thwarting the veteran receivers comeback. Stallworth was hindered through most of training camp by a hamstring injury. He caught two passes for 33 yards in preseason games. "You could see with the setback with his hamstring, he just wasnt ready," coach Mike Shanahan said. The 32-year-old player signed with the Redskins in June, three months after he was seriously burned in a hot air balloon accident in Florida. He faced a tough challenge making a roster that already includes Pierre Garcon, Joshua Morgan, Santana Moss and Leonard Hankerson. Stallworth has played for six teams over 10 NFL seasons. He missed the 2009 season when he was suspended by the NFL after pleading guilty to killing a pedestrian while driving drunk. He appeared in only one game last year with the New England Patriots before an ankle injury ended his season. "I thought in his best interest, since I knew he waasnt going to be on the football team, was to tell him early," Shanahan said.dddddddddddd "Give him a chance, possibly, to get with another football team." The Redskins also waived linebacker Ricky Elmore, fullback Eric Kettani, kicker John Potter, receiver Chip Reeves and linebacker Quan Sturdivant. Cornerback and punt returner Richard Crawford, who damaged three ligaments in his left knee in Saturdays preseason game, and linebacker Jeremy Kimbrough (right shoulder) were waived with injury designations. Shanahan said Monday that Crawford will require nine months of recovery. Rookie safety Phillip Thomas (left foot) and linebacker Keenan Robinson (left shoulder) were placed on injured reserve. The Redskins have three more cuts to announce before Tuesdays deadline to reduce the roster to 75. They are expected to be tackle Jeremy Trueblood, linebacker Roddrick Muckelroy and offensive lineman Jacolby Ashworth. None was at Mondays practice. ' ' '