2025 World Juniors: Canada hopes to bounce back and more highlight top storylines for Dec. 29

Steven Ellis
Steven Ellis
Calum Ritchie (Steven Ellis/The Nation Network)

OTTAWA – After a quiet Saturday afternoon with just two games, we’re back to a full four-game slate on Sunday at the 2025 World Junior Championship.

Most of the tournament heavyweights are in action, with Canada, USA, Sweden, Finland and Czechia all hitting the ice. We’ll see some notable rivalries at both rinks, and a few teams looking for redemption along the way.

Here’s a look at the top storylines for Sunday:

1. How will Canada’s adjusted lines look?

Canada officially registered Carson Rehkopf and Sawyer Mynio since the loss to Latvia, meaning we’re set to see some shakeups in the Canadian lineup. Mynio is in for Matthew Schaefer, who is out for the rest of the tournament, while Rehkopf will look to give the team some scoring punch – and potentially on the power play, where Canada has truly lacked oomph.

It’s unclear how Canada’s lines will look, but they need a desperate shake-up. We got into that a bit more in-depth here, so check out some of the suggestions. Regardless, Canada needs to move on from the shocking loss to Latvia and battle back against a German team that gave the Finns a run for their money a few days back.

Germany has been outscored 28-10 since the start of the pre-tournament, with their 4-0 win coming against Kazakhstan back on Dec. 19. They took advantage of some mistakes by the Americans in their own zone on Dec. 26 but had just one goal to show for against Finland. They’re a fast, hard-working team, but they’re going to need to keep Canada to the perimeter if they’re going to pull off an upset.

2. How will the result of the USA/Finland shake things up?

The United States sit in first place in Group A with a perfect 2-0 record, giving them the inside track to top spot when the round-robin concludes on New Year’s Eve. But despite losing to Canada on Thursday, the Finns still have a shot to overcome the Americans if they can win today. Latvia’s victory over Canada meant we won’t see two teams with perfect records squaring off on New Year’s Eve, but we could still see a legitimate three-way battle for the top spot if the Finns come out on top today.

To do that, the USA has typically had Finland’s number in recent years, including in a 5-2 pre-tournament victory on Dec. 23. The Americans have won the last three round-robin meetings between the two sides, so the Finns will be looking to change course. Scoring has been an issue for the Finns in this tournament, but the Americans haven’t had much luck defensively. With those two issues clashing in real-time, it could get interesting – especially with the Americans playing a game about 24 hours earlier.

All eyes are on the Canada/USA game on Tuesday, but this one could prove to be just as important in deciding the quarterfinal seedings.

3. Czechia, Slovakia matchup could have major consequences

It’s never a dull moment when Czechia and Slovakia meet up. The Czechs have won both meetings between the two teams in U-20 play this season, but the Slovaks blasted Czechia 6-2 in the main event last December. They typically play close matchups most years, building up one of the most exciting rivalries in international hockey.

But there’s a lot on the line here, too. Czechia is first in Group A with a 2-0 record, tying themselves with Sweden (but holding the goal differential advantage for now). Meanwhile, Slovakia could tie the Czechs with a regulation win, making the battle for Group B even more interesting. Sweden is the favorite to win the group and should have the edge over a winless Switzerland earlier in the day, but the winner of Czechia/Slovakia could very well decide who’ll finish second, at the very least.

Sunday Schedule

Sweden vs. Switzerland: 12:00 PM ET
USA vs. Finland: 2:30 PM ET
Czechia vs. Slovakia: 5:00 PM ET
Canada vs. Germany: 7:30 PM ET

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