Top standouts from Canada vs. Sweden at 2024 World Junior Championship
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.
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