Canada loses in World Juniors quarters again while USA’s top players shine vs. Swiss

OTTAWA — The stage is set for the medal round at the 2025 World Juniors. After the tournament’s only five-game slate (all four quarterfinals plus the relegation game), here are the standouts, notes and analysis from The Athletic’s on-site prospects writers, Corey Pronman and Scott Wheeler.

• Germany defeated Kazakhstan 4-3 in this year’s relegation game. Kazakhstan jumped out to a 3-1 lead early in the second period but they couldn’t hang on and the Germans scored three unanswered. Denmark won the Division 1A tournament and will replace Kazakhstan in the 2026 World Juniors in Minnesota.
• Sweden defeated Latvia 3-2 in the first quarterfinal of the day to remain the tournament’s lone undefeated team. David Edstrom (Nashville) was named player of the game for the Swedes. He scored and had a second goal called back after an offside review.
• USA defeated Switzerland 7-2. Ryan Leonard (Washington) and James Hagens (2025 draft eligible) each scored twice and Gabe Perreault (NY Rangers) had three assists. Oliver Moore (Chicago), Zeev Buium (Minnesota) and Brodie Ziemer (Buffalo) each also had multi-point games.
• Finland defeated Slovakia 5-3. Jesse Nurmi (NY Islanders) and Rasmus Kumpulainen (Minnesota) each had two goals for the Finns.
• Czechia defeated Canada 4-3 on a late goal from Adam Jecho (Blues), ousting them for a second consecutive year in the quarters.

Latvia one of the stories of the tournament

Capitals prospect Eriks Mateiko scored both of Latvia’s goals on Thursday afternoon and finished the tournament with five goals in five games. He had half of the 10 total goals Latvia scored in the tournament and while it’s rare for a player who doesn’t make the semifinals to make the tournament All-Star Team, I think he’s got a compelling case. So does Latvian goalie Linards Feldbergs, who made another 47 saves, finishing the tournament with a .929 save percentage on 226 shots in five games (45 shots a game). Latvia had their best tournament ever at the World Juniors, winning two games for the first time. They beat Canada and Germany, and played Sweden, Finland and USA closer than expected. Mateiko and Feldbergs were the biggest reason for that.

Mateiko looks like a potential future bottom-six NHLer. He’s listed at 6-foot-6 now, he plays his heart out and his skating has made enough progress to give him a real chance.

While both Mateiko and Feldbergs aren’t eligible to return to next year’s tournament, the Latvians had the youngest team in the tournament, with four 2008s and two 2007s. They should be able to build on this. — Scott Wheeler

USA’s top players have their big day

We’ve been waiting for the USA top line of James Hagens in between Gabe Perreault and Ryan Leonard and their top defenseman Zeev Buium to have a huge game, and the quarterfinal against Switzerland was that game. Buium in particular was buzzing all night long. He was activating into attacks like we’re used to seeing him do at Denver, using his high-end skating and skill to create a ton of chances including his flashy goal in the second period. Hagens and Leonard both scored twice, and Leonard was chosen as USA’s player of the game. He was involved in a lot of offense, while also being highly physical and agitating the Swiss team throughout the game. — Corey Pronman

Czechia re-emerging as hockey power

The Czechs are on a run of three straight medals at the World Juniors and have now guaranteed themselves an opportunity to make it four in a row. That would be a first since their days as Czechoslovakia. They’re a deep enough program right now that they actually had quote-unquote snubs this year. They left off a second-rounder prospect in Dominik Badinka (Carolina) off their roster and a soon-to-be first-rounder in Radim Mrtka, as well as Adam Benak, who has carried their next age groups at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup the last couple of years. Michael Hrabal (Utah) has been great in net for them for a second straight World Juniors and is in the top goalie conversation into the semifinals. He stopped another 29 of 32 on Thursday. But I’ve been struck by their depth. This group has three strong forward lines and three legit D pairings. Eduard Sale (Seattle), Jakub Stancl (St. Louis), Petr Sikora (Washington) and others have all had really nice showings in Ottawa. — Scott Wheeler

(Photo of Brayden Yager and Gavin McKenna: Mathias Bergeld / Sipa via AP Images)