World Junior Roundup: Czechia, USA, Sweden, Switzerland come out on top

Czechia stuns Canada with victory

Czechia took advantage of many Canadian mistakes to pull off a solid 5-2 upset on Monday to end Day 1 play in Halifax.

The Czechs got an early goal that was waved off due to goaltender interference, but they couldn’t capitalize on the momentum. At 10:33, Shane Wright tipped Olen Zellweger’s point shot past Tomas Suchanek for the 1-0 goal, stealing the momentum away. Brandt Clarke scored a few minutes later, but that was also called off due to Joshua Roy being offside.

From there, the Czechs took over. At 17:48, Stanislav Svozil found David Spacek crashing the and made it 1-1, with defenseman David Moravec scoring less than a minute later to give the Czechs the advantage.

The highlight of the first, however, was the two failed lacrosse goal attempts by Canada. First, Adam Fantilli went for it, only Spacek to knock the puck off his stick and away from danger. Then, Bedard’s attempt was stopped after Suchanek covered the top left corner perfectly and kept it out.

A goal for Svozil just 44 seconds into the second put Czechia up by two, but not for long. Connor Bedard would get his first of the tournament when his release beat Suchanek over the glove to make it 3-2, keeping the game close.

A game misconduct for head contact to Zach Dean early in the second sent the Canadians spiraling. At 28:14, David Jiricek found Jaroslav Chmelar standing in front and he made no mistake in knocking it out of the air and past Benjamin Gaudreau. Just 33 seconds later, Matous Mensik beat Gaudreau with a tough-angle shot, giving Czechia the 5-2 lead.

Canada peppered goaltender with chances, but the star of the 2022 tournament stood his ground. He made 36 stops total to outduel the goaltending duo of Gaudreau and Milic, with Milic stopping every shot sent his way.

USA stops Latvia despite close first half

It was a bit closer than they likely expected, but the United States opened Group B action with a 5-2 win over Latvia in Moncton.

The first period didn’t have anything to show for, although USA’s Tyler Boucher came close late in the frame. The Americans still took the 1-0 lead with an early second-period goal, with Jimmy Snuggerud knocking in a loose puck to end the deadlock.

But just four minutes later, the Latvians answered back. Rainers Rullers was able to sucker Luke Hughes out of position before finding Anri Ravinskis, who knocked in the shot past 2023 draft prospect Trey Augustine for the 1-1 goal.

The Americans regained their advantage five minutes later when Sean Behrens’ shot from the point went through traffic and beat Patriks Berzins, giving USA its advantage back in a game that definitely felt close.

Latvia didn’t shoot much, but they at least made their shots count. On the team’s second shot of the middle stanza, 2023 NHL Draft prospect Nils Fenenko used a heavy screen in front of the American net to tie it up at 34:24.

Another early period gave the Americans another advantage. This time, Chaz Lucius, a Winnipeg Jets prospect, took a feed from Jackson Blake and backhanded the puck over Berzins to make it 3-2, restoring the team’s one-goal advantage. A goal for Red Savage a few minutes later gave USA its first two-goal lead, making it 4-2. Hughes scored a far-out shot from the blueline later on to finish the game, giving USA a bit of relief after a close start.

Sweden crushes Austria in tournament’s first blowout

After ending pre-tournament play with a disappointing loss to Switzerland, Sweden kicked off the main tournament off with a massive 11-0 win over Austria.

Sweden has won all four meetings between the two teams, including 6-0 at the summer tournament. Austria hasn’t scored against Sweden since the first meeting between the two nations, a 7-3 loss at the 2010 tournament.

The Austrians got some good goaltending out of Thomas Pfarrmaier in the first, who made a highlight blocker save on Filip Bystedt early. But at 13:17, Isak Rosen scored on a 2-on-1 opportunity where he alluded to making a pass before beating Pfarrmaier for the 1-0 goal. Four minutes later, Rosen set up Bystedt for an opportunity he wouldn’t miss, giving Sweden a 2-0 lead in the first.

From there, the much stronger Swedes took full control. The team had six goals on just 13 shots in the second, with Rosen scoring his second of the night and third point of the game just 48 seconds in.

Two minutes later, Simon Robertsson scored from an Elias Pettersson feed, getting the puck past traffic. Milton Oscarson scored a shorthanded goal five minutes after that before Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Liam Ohgren and Calle Odelius added goals to make it 8-0.

Odelius scored early in the third before Bystedt scored another to make it 10-0. Fourth-liner Oscar Pettersson made it 11-0 with around seven minutes left to give Sweden more goals than Austria had shots, finishing it up at 11-0.

Attilio Biasca scores winner as Switzerland stuns Finland

It only took one game, but the 2023 World Junior Championship saw its first shock of the tournament with Switzerland beating Finland 3-2 in overtime in Moncton.

Switzerland last beat Finland on Dec. 31, 2019, a 5-2 victory for the plucky underdogs. Their last win before that came at the 2014 tournament in the shootout.

The first period had nothing to write home about, with both teams taking a real neutral stance. That all changed at 22:24 when an ill-timed pinch by Switzerland’s defense, with Sami Paivarinta and Kalle Vaisanen both touching the puck before Konsta Kapanen scored on the rebound.

Despite the deficit, the Swiss definitely looked like the better team and kept the pressure on. It eventually paid off as Lenni Hameenaho gave the puck away in front of the Finnish net. Lorenzo Canonica was there to capitalize, making it 1-1 with just under eight minutes to go in the second.

The Swiss started off strong in the third, entering with a 16-9 shot advantage. At 44:43, Jeremy Jabola was the last to touch a Mats Alge shot that was lost in a crowd in front of the Finnish net, giving Switzerland its first lead of the tournament. It was short-lived, though, as Vaisanen’s snipe at 48:09 forced the game into extra time.

It didn’t take long for the Swiss to end the game. Just 41 seconds into overtime after Lian Bichsel was stopped on a breakaway, Halifax Mooseheads star Attilio Biasca was in the right spot at the right time to rip a shot past Aku Koskenvuo, securing the shocking victory for Switzerland.

Three Stars

Filip Bystedt, F (SWE): Seemed like every time Bystedt hit the ice, the Swedes were generating offense. With two goals and an assist, he was a big piece of that.
Tomas Suchanek, G (CZE): David Jiricek and Stanislav Svozil deserve some praise too, but Suchanek was rock solid for the Czechs when Canada started to lay on the pressure.
Isak Rosen, F (SWE): Same stat line as Bystedt, and nearly unstoppable on the rush in the first half against Sweden. There are high hopes for him this year.