U.S., Sweden will battle for group supremacy in World Junior Championship

The last time the United States played Sweden in the World Junior Championship was in the 2024 tournament that matched the top under-20 men’s hockey players in the world.

Team USA battled the Swedes in the championship game in Gothenburg, Sweden, and skated away with gold after a dominant 6-2 victory.

They meet again on at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 31, at Grand Casino Arena with the Group A title on the line. Both teams have 3-0 records and nine points in the standings, and the winner will secure one of the two top seeds for the quarterfinals.

For Sweden, the quarterfinal offers an opportunity to turn the tables on Team USA for the 2024 gold medal game.

“One hundred percent,” Sweden defenseman Sascha Boumedienne said after Sweden’s 8-1 romp over Germany on Monday, Dec. 29. “We’re on their home soil now and looking to beat them here. That makes it even more fun.”

The Swedes have had all sorts of fun so far in group play, outscoring Slovakia, Switzerland and Germany by a combined 15-5. Against Germany, Jack Berglund, Anton Frondell and Viggo Bjorck each scored two goals for Sweden.

”Sweden has been a great team in the world juniors in the past couple years," said U.S. forward Will Zellers of Maple Grove. “The 2024 gold medal game, I mean they played hard. It’s going to be a really intense atmosphere.”

“I’d like [the No. 1 seed], but the importance is how we’re playing,” Motzko said. “And who knows who you’ll play? I’d like to get the No. 1 seed, but more important, I want to know how well we’re playing.”

Top U.S. defenseman Cole Hutson, who left Saturday’s game on a stretcher after being hit up high with a shot, is still day-to-day. Max Plante left Monday’s game after a high hit, and is also day-to-day, Motzko said.

Canada did not medal in the past two World Junior Championships, and when the Canadians needed overtime to beat Latvia 2-1 in their second Group A game in this tournament, concern arose over the border.

The Canadians answered Monday, Dec. 29, with a 9-1 rout of Denmark in which Penn State’s Gavin McKenna, the possible No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft, notched a hat trick. Canada leads Group A with eight points, one ahead of Finland.

The Canadians and Finns square off in their group finale at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 31, at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The game’s winner claims the Group B title and one of the two top seeds in the quarterfinals.

The United States, Sweden and Canada have clinched top-two finishes in their respective pools, and therefore their quarterfinal time assignments have been set for games on Friday, Jan. 2. The assignments are:

Quarterfinal 1, Sweden vs. TBD, 1 p.m. Jan. 2, Grand Casino Arena

Quarterfinal 2, TBD vs. TBD, 3:30 p.m. Jan. 2, 3M Arena at Mariucci

Quarterfinal 3, USA vs. TBD, 5 p.m. Jan. 2, Grand Casino Arena