Top players from Day 4 of the 2024 World Junior Championship
Sweden and Slovakia remain perfect, USA won in the shootout and Finland finally snagged a win on the fourth day of action of the World Junior Championship in Sweden.
Here’s a breakdown of everything you need to know:
Sweden stays perfect with 2-0 shutout of Canada
It had the best atmosphere of any game, and the battle lived up to the hype.
Sweden managed to shut out Canada 2-0 in front of a loud crowd at the Scandinavium in Gothenburg, featuring a good mix of fans of both teams.
It was a tight game to start, going scoreless into the first intermission. But that all changed when a Canadian turnover led to Tom Willander’s goal at 21:53. From there, the Swedes got the bulk of the dangerous chances in the middle stanza, with Noah Ostlund scoring on a Jonathan Lekkerimaki rebound to make it 2-0.
The goaltending took center stage the rest of the way, with Hugo Havelid making all 21saves for the shutout win. Mathis Rousseau looked good for Canada, stopping 21 shots, but it wasn’t enough in the end.
Sweden has yet to allow a goal in three games while skating out to a perfect nine points in three games. They have clinched top spot in Group A, and will play the last-place team in Group B in the quarterfinal. They still have to play Finland at 8:30 AM ET on Sunday in another game that should have a packed crowd. Canada, meanwhile, will find themselves in a fight for Germany in second, with the two teams meeting on Dec. 31 at 1:30 PM ET.
Here’s a look at the top performers for both teams:
Canada
#30 Mathis Rousseau, G (Undrafted): There’s not much you can do when your team can’t score. Sweden had some five-bell chances early in the game, especially on the two-man advantage, but Rousseau was up for the challenge. There wasn’t much he could on the goals against, getting screened on the first one and making a big stop before getting beat on the rebound for the second one. This was Rousseau’s best performance for Canada thus far, but it didn’t matter in the end.
#17 Macklin Celebrini, C (2024 NHL Draft): Celebrini started on the fourth line but was promoted to the second with Easton Cowan and Matthew Poitras late in the game to try and generate something. He made some good plays, trying to generate chances, but just nothing was working. Regardless, no other Canadian forward put in an effort like their team’s youngest skater.
Sweden
#35 Hugo Havelid, G (Undrafted): That was the best game I’ve seen from Havelid over the past three years, no question. The pressure of playing in front of your home crowd is one thing, but when one of the top teams is peppering you all night, it can be difficult to rise to the occasion. Instead, Havelid stopped everything sent his way, with Canada generating some high-quality chances.
#9 Theo Lindstein, D (St. Louis Blues): Lindstein was the last played added to the Swedish roster, and he’s been one of the best all tournament long. He set up Willander for the 1-0 goal before making a nice play to keep the puck in the zone on Ostlund’s 2-0 goal. Between the smart passes, the chemistry with Willander or the strong defensive-zone play, Lindstein has been one of my favorites this tournament.
#24 Tom Willander, D (Vancouver Canucks): I thought this was Willander’s best game as he dealt with his toughest matchups yet. He’s so relaxed under pressure, but he has an active stick and good gap control. Willander is known for a good wrister, and he put it on display with the icebreaker in the second period.
#15 David Edstrom, C (Vegas Golden Knights): Edstrom has been one of Sweden’s best players in front of the net, having some close looks in front of Rousseau. He didn’t score, but he was the centerpiece of Sweden’s impressive third line that went on a scoring rampage against Germany a few nights ago. Edstrom plays a stout two-way game and battles hard along the boards for every chance.
Slovakia avoids collapse with 8-4 win over Norway
Norway managed to score first today, but the lead didn’t last long as Slovakia exploded for an 8-4 win to kick off Friday’s action at the 2024 World Junior Championship in Sweden.
It was a difficult loss to the Norwegians, who outplayed Slovakia early. But now they sit at 0-3 and will need to beat Switzerland on Saturday if they’re going to avoid falling into the relegation round this year.
Slovakia, meanwhile, look good with a 3-0 record ahead of their final game against the United States on Sunday morning – a game that should decide the winner of Group B.
Norway’s lone goal came from Michael Brandsegg-Nygard at 3:08 – the first goal of the tournament for the 2024 NHL Draft prospect. But goals from Samuel Honzek and Juraj Pekarcik half a minute apart later in the third made it a 2-1 game to close out the first period.
The second was where everything fell apart, with Slovakia scoring five goals. Dalibor Dvorsky scored his first of the tournament, while Servac Petrovsky scored a pair to make it 5-1, temporarily taking over the tournament scoring lead. Peter Repcik then made it 6-1 on the power play before Luka Radivojevic scored his first of the tournament at 34:08.
The third period was quieter, with Stian Solberg scoring early for Norway. But Slovakia would regain its six-goal advantage with Dvorsky’s second of the game, only for Petter Vesterheim to score off of a Brandsegg-Nygaard rebound late to make it 8-3. Brandsegg-Nygaard then scored on a late-game power play, but it was far too late for them to get back into an otherwise lopsided contest.
Slovakia
#18 Servac Petrovsky, C (Minnesota Wild): After registering four points in his first two games, Petrovsky is doing everything in his power to become the tournament MVP. He had a four-point effort today, including a goal and two assists in the second period. He’s been great on the power play, has had no issue getting quality shots on net and his eye for passes has been as good as anyone.
#15 Dalibor Dvorsky, C (St. Louis Blues): It was only a matter of time until everything finally clicked for Slovakia’s top player. He had three assists, including a primary one that led to Petrovsky’s first goal at 27:10. But he also scored twice too, showing what happens when you give him space to unleash his wrister. Slovakia is rolling, and having Dvorsky playing like he did today helps.
#4 Maxim Strbak, D (Buffalo Sabres): I thought this was Strbak’s best game of the tournament, looking good on the attack, moving the puck well and, most importantly, looking good defensively. He had three assists, including a primary one that led to Petrovsky’s first goal at 27:10. He can get caught trying to do too much too often, but Strbak’s game was as steady as it has been in this tournament this year.
#10 Filip Mesar, RW (Montreal Canadiens): Mesar had three assists, but I thought it was more of the smaller things in his game that stood out today. The speed, the attack, the defensive play, everything just felt rounded. Mesar had some good stretch passes, but he also makes smart, short-distance plays that put defenders off guard, too.
Norway
#28 Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, RW (2024 NHL Draft): Nobody outworks Brandsegg-Nygard when he’s on his game, and a good end-to-end effort helped lead to the opening goal. He can really shoot it, too, knocking off Adam Gajan’s water bottle with a perfectly placed wrister. It was MBN’s first goal of the tournament, but don’t be surprised if he finds another against Switzerland because he’s been one of Norway’s best players throughout. He added an assist for good measure on Norway’s third goal before scoring his second of the game to make it 8-4.
#10 Stian Solberg, D (2024 NHL Draft): The other draft prospect of note, Solberg scored his first goal in the best effort you could possibly ask for in a lopsided loss. I thought he had some passes, play reads and I liked how he was willing to jump in on the rush.
Finland shuts out Latvia for first win
It took longer than expected, but Finland finally took home their first win of the tournament, beating Latvia 4-0 to kick off Group A play in Sweden on Friday.
Latvia has still yet to score a goal through three games with just the final match against Germany tomorrow to close things out.
The Finns will look to keep their momentum alive against Sweden on Sunday, which could result in the Finns taking as high as second place in the group after a challenging first two games against Canada and Germany. If the Latvians beat Germany, and Finland loses in regulation to Sweden, that would create a three-way tie, with goal-differential coming into play.
The Finnish power play had struggled before today, but they came alive with three goals. Jere Lassila, Kasper Halttunen and Oiva Keskinen all capitalized with the man advantage, while Jesse Pulkkinen scored the lone even-strength goal in the first period.
Finland outshot Latvia 20-3 in the first period and never looked back, finishing with a 43-23 advantage. Noa Vali stopped everything in his first world junior game for the Finns, which has to help for confidence.
Here’s a look at the top performers on Friday evening in Sweden:
Finland
#15 Jesse Pulkkinen, D (Undrafted): Passed over in 2023, I don’t think that will happen again in 2024. The top-pairing defender has impressed scouts all week long with how confident he is rushing the puck up the ice, and he was rewarded with the 2-0 goal. He’s a good enough skater to get back into position after a rush up the ice, which was only amplified against a slower Latvian team today.
#22 Kasper Halttunen, RW (San Jose Sharks): Halttunen had a big night for the Finns, scoring a power-play goal at 28:59 and snagging an assist on the team’s first goal. I still worry he’ll be more of a PP specialist at the NHL the way he produces, but he’s as good as anyone there, so that’s not really a bad thing.
#28 Jere Lassila, C (Undrafted): Lassila has been one of Finland’s most consistent players through three games, and he had a goal and an assist just a minute apart in the first period. He then set up Halttunen for his power-play goal, with the two moving very well with the extra period. Lassila had a fourth assist on the power play early in the third just for good measure. He’s been a difference-maker for Finland, and he’ll need to be against Sweden.
#20 Oiva Keskinen, C (Columbus Blue Jackets): This felt like Keskinen’s most complete effort. He was on the power play, penalty kill and scored the fourth goal. He’s very versatile and can skate decently well, too. For a seventh-rounder, the Blue Jackets might have some found gold here, and I hope to see him play a big role as the Finns keep moving forward.
#31 Noa Vali, G (Undrafted): Vali wasn’t busy early with just three saves in the first period. But the Latvians had some good looks, especially late, and made 23 saves for the shutout. He’s a smaller goalie, but he moves well to help offset the lack of size. We’ll see if he gets another start, but he looked good when the Finns needed him to be.
Latvia
#1 Deivs Rolovs, G (Undrafted): Rolovs looked uncomfortable going down and getting back up on multiple occasions tonight, but it might be due to the over-exertion he had to deal with early. He faced 18 shots in the first period as the Finns kept rolling, and Rolovs did everything possible to keep it a tight game. They expected a difficult match against the Finns, but it’ll be interesting to see if they use hm again tomorrow against Germany in the final game of the round-robin.
USA beats Czechia in shootout thriller
The United States have managed to survive an intense back-and-forth affair to beat Czechia 4-3 in the shootout in one of the best games of the 2024 World Junior Championship.
Isaac Howard scored the final goal in overtime, beating Michael Hrabal down low after Gabriel Perreault scored earlier to extend the shootout past five players.
The win keeps the United States in second place in Group B with eight points, while Czechia holds third place with four.
The Americans will get Saturday off to prepare for their game against Slovakia at 6:00 AM ET on Sunday, the final round-robin game for both teams. USA will need to win that game to secure top spot in the group. The Czechs will play in the late game in Group B that day, fighting Switzerland at 11:00 AM ET on Dec. 31.
The Americans started off hot, with Isaac Howard taking a Frank Nazar feed to make it 1-0 at 1:12. But the Czechs would take the lead after 26 minutes of play, with Jackub Stancl and Adam Bares giving them the advantage. The game swayed like a pendulum from there. Will Smith answered back at 28:04, with Robin Sapousek giving the Czechs the 3-2 advantage at 31:47. The score remained that way until Ryan Chesley tied it up at 34:11, the goal that forced overtime.
The two teams traded chances early in the extra frame, but they needed overtime to find the winner. Jiri Kulich scored the lone goal for the Czechs, while Gabe Perreault and Howard scored for the United States to cap off the victory.
Here’s a look at the top players from both teams:
USA
#91 Frank Nazar, C (Chicago Blackhawks): Nazar kicked things off by setting up Howard’s goal at 1:12, and then drew a penalty a few minutes later on another dangerous scoring chance. After a four-assist effort against the Swiss on Thursday, Nazar has emerged as the tournament’s most dangerous setup man – and he knows how to score, given he had a hat-trick at the World Junior Summer Showcase. Don’t give him an opportunity to make things happen.
#6 Will Smith, C (San Jose Sharks): Smith did a great of getting to the net, as he does, and capitalized on Ryan Leonard’s pass to make it 2-2 in the second. That line knows a thing or two about dominating together, and all three had a touch on that second goal. Smith, though, made some other impressive passes and back-checked as hard as I’ve seen him in this tournament, especially in the second period.
#22 Isaac Howard, LW (Tampa Bay Lightning): Howard scored the opening goal just over a minute into the game and led all Americans with four shots in the first two periods of play. Every time he hit the ice, he was pushing the play and trying to create something, as we’ve seen him do so well in college this year. The shootout winner had to feel good, too. He hasn’t had an off-game in this tournament yet, and the shootout.
#20 Lane Hutson, D (Montreal Canadiens): I thought this was Hutson’s best game in an otherwise average tournament for the young star. He moved the puck well and helped create Chesley’s goal from around the goal line. At times, it feels like he’s trying to hold himself back instead of doing the usual offensive shenanigans that make him so successful in college. He’s a better defensive player than he was a year ago, for sure. Hopefully, today’s game helps unlock his offensive touch.
Czechia
#12 Dominik Rymon, LW (Undrafted): Rymon isn’t big at 5-foot-9, but he has the motor to make things happen. After losing the puck on a rush early in the game, he got behind the goal line and set up Jakub Stancl’s 1-0 goal to make it 1-0. Rymon’s energy has been noticeable in Czechia’s top six, making him valuable even when he doesn’t have the puck on his stick.
#28 Eduard Sale, LW (Seattle Kraken): After a hat trick on Thursday, Sale set up the 3-2 goal that briefly gave the Czechs the lead. He and Sapousek seemed to have some good chemistry, both bringing some energy and strength to the second line. It seems like he gained the confidence needed after a difficult first game, and that means danger to any team Czechia comes across in the quarterfinal.
#25 Jiri Kulich, RW (Buffalo Sabres): Kulich was buzzing all game, especially in the second when he had a pair of good scoring chances. He was drawing defenders away from the net, but also getting near the crease often, too. Kulich scored in the shootout, but nothing in the 65 minutes of game action. It was a good effort, regardless.
#30 Michael Hrabal, G (Arizona Coyotes): Hrabal got off to a rough start with a goal against on the first shot. There wasn’t much he could do on the back and forth in the second, but he came up big with solid stops as the Americans put on the pressure in the third. Hrabal had to make a big save just seconds into overtime, which then resulted in a scoring chance by the Czechs shortly after.