World Juniors Tracker

Stay up-to-day with Islanders prospects Kieffer Bellows, Otto Koivula and Robin Salo at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships. Click here for full our WJC preview, rosters and schedule. Official IIHF WJC website.
DAY 11: BELLOWS WINS BRONZE, SETS USA RECORD FOR GOALS
By Dan Hanson
Kieffer Bellows scored twice on Friday for his tournament-leading ninth goal of the World Junior Hockey Championship, as Team USA defeated the Czech Republic 9-3 to secure the bronze medal. Bellows breaks Jeremy Roenick's previous record of eight goals, which was done during the 1989 World Juniors.

Bellows' first tally came at 7:23 of the second period to give the Americans a 5-0 lead. He followed up at 19:01 of the same frame to extend the lead to 7-0, as Team USA dominated the Czechs in the bronze medal game.
The bronze medal is Bellows' second medal at the World Juniors, winning a gold medal with Team USA last year.
The Islanders' 2016 first-rounder (19th overall) leads the tournament in goals (9) and shots (38). Bellows also recorded one assist in the tourney to finish with 10 points in seven games played for a plus-minus rating of plus-two.

DAY 10: BELLOWS SCORES, BUT USA LOSES IN SEMIS TO SWEDEN, WILL PLAY FOR BRONZE
By Cory Wright
Kieffer Bellows scored his tournament-leading seventh goal of the World Juniors, but Team USA lost to Sweden 4-2 in semifinal action on Thursday night. As a result, the defending World Junior champions will be playing for a bronze medal against the Czech Republic at 4 p.m. on Friday.

Three third period goals were the difference on Thursday, as Sweden scored three times in a 2:08 stretch to turn a 1-0 game into a 4-0 lead. The backbreaker came during a Team USA power play, as Sweden scored twice in 38 seconds. Bellows put the Americans on the board with a power-play goal with 7:36 to play, but the hill was too big to climb.
The Islanders' 2016 first-rounder (19th overall) leads the tournament in goals (7) and shots (33). Team USA will play the loser of Canada-Czech Republic. Bellows was named as one of Team USA's best three players of the tournament after the game.
Click here for a full recap/boxscore from the IIHF.
DAY 8: BELLOWS LEADS USA PAST RUSSIA, FINLAND ELIMINATED
By Megan McGuire
Kieffer Bellows scored two goals, including the game-winner, as Team USA beat Russia 4-2 to advance to the semifinals at the World Junior Hockey Championships.

Bellows' first goal came 2:18 into the first period off a pass from Brady Tkachuk to put Team USA ahead 1-0. The Islanders' 2016 first-round draft pick's second goal came in the third period - a slap shot to break a 2-2 tie. Bellows ended the night with seven shots, 15:03 TOI and was named Team USA's player of the game.
Bellows leads the World Juniors with six goals in five games. The quarterfinal win eliminated Russia and halted the Russian's seven-year medal streak. Bellows and Team USA face off this Thursday at 4pm against Sweden in the day's first semifinal.

Click here for a full recap from the IIHF.
FINLAND LOSES IN QUARTERFINALS
Otto Koivula, Robin Salo and Team Finland were eliminated from the World Juniors on Tuesday, falling 4-3 in a shootout to the Czech Republic.
Koivula logged 12:11 of playing time with two shots and no points in the quarterfinal contest. Salo did not take the ice in the Finn's final contest.
Koivula finished the tournament playing in all five games and recording two assists. He also notched 12 shots on goal. Salo played in three games, but had zero points.
Click here for a full recap from the IIHF.
DAY 7: QUARTERFINAL MATCHUPS SET
The knockout phase of the World Junior Hockey Championships will begin on Tuesday January 2.
Kieffer Bellows and Team USA take on Russia at 8 p.m. eastern, while Otto Koivula, Robin Salo and Team Finland take on the Czech Republic at noon eastern. If Team USA wins, they'll play the winner of Sweden-Slovakia and if Finland wins, they'll play the winner of Canada-Switzerland.
The semifinals will be played on Jan. 4.
DAY 6: USA BEATS FINLAND, CLINCHES SECOND PLACE IN GROUP A
By Cory Wright
Kieffer Bellows and Team USA beat Otto Koivula, Robin Salo and Team Finland 5-4 on Sunday afternoon.
Bellows and Koivula were held off the scoresheet, while Salo was the extra defenseman for the Finns.
Team USA led 3-0 and 4-2 on Sunday, but got a scare from the Finns who tied the game 4-4 with a pair of quick strikes in the third period. The Americans avoided overtime when Long Island native (Jericho, NY) Adam Fox broke the deadlock with 1:37 to play.
With the win, Team USA finishes second in Group A with a 2-0-1-1 record (eight points), while Finland will finish third with a 2-0-0-2 record (six points). The quarterfinals are set to begin on Jan. 2, but final seeding has yet to be determined.

DAY 5: FINLAND BEATS SLOVAKIA, ISLES PROSPECTS HELD POINTLESS
By Dan Hanson
Otto Koivula was held pointless and Robin Salo did not play, but Team Finland beat Team Slovakia 5-2 on Saturday.
Koivula had one shot on net during the contest and was on the ice for Aleksi Heponiemi's goal that gave Finland a 3-1 lead. In 15:57 TOI, Koivula had had a minus-one rating. Salo did not see any ice time today, as he was dressed as the seventh defenseman for the Finns.
Finland improves to 2-0-0-1, good enough for six points. Finland will play Islanders prospect Kieffer Bellows and Team USA on Sunday to close out the preliminary round. Sunday's Finland-USA game will effectively decide second place in Group A.
Click here for a full Finland-Slovakia boxscore.

DAY 4: BELLOWS SCORES AS USA BEATS CANADA IN OUTDOOR GAME
By Dan Hanson
Kieffer Bellows scored a goal in regulation and the game-decider in a shootout, as Team USA scored a 4-3 comeback win over Team Canada on a cold and snowy day at New Era Field in Orchard Park, NY.
Bellows put the Americans on the board at 16:27 of the second period with a slap shot that beat goaltender Carter Hart. Bellows' goal came on a two-man advantage and made it 2-1 after Canada jumped out to a 2-0 lead. The United States trailed Canada by a score of 3-1 before mounting a comeback in the third to force overtime.

After both teams went scoreless in the extra session, Bellows started the shootout by converting on his attempt. Brady Tkachuk scored on the next try for the Americans, while goaltender Jake Oettinger stopped all four Canadian shots, resulting in Bellows' goal being determined the game-winner.

Team USA improves to 1-1-0-1 at this year's World Junior Championships. They close out the preliminary round this Sunday against Team Finland, which pits him against fellow Islanders prospects Robin Salo and Otto Koivula.
Friday's game at the home of the NFL's Buffalo Bills was the first-ever outdoor game in the history of the World Juniors. It also had the highest attendance of any game in the history of the tournament, capping out at 44,592.
Click here for a full recap from the IIHF.
DAY 3: KOIVULA GETS ASSIST IN WIN, BELLOWS AND USA LOSE TO SLOVAKIA
By Megan McGuire
Otto Koivula recorded his second assist in as many games and Robin Salo made his World Juniors debut, as Finland beat Denmark 4-1 on Thursday - the third day of the tournament.
Koivula notched an assist on Finland's final goal for his second point of the World Juniors. Finland had 62 shots to Denmark's seven, with the Islanders' 2016 fourth-round pick (120th overall) notching five of his own.

Salo played his first game of the tournament after missing Finland's 4-2 loss to Canada on Tuesday with illness. The 2017 second-round pick (46th overall) took the ice for about 13 minutes (12:59).
Finland improved to 1-0-0-1 with the win and avenged last year's loss to Denmark as the Danes beat the Finns for the first time ever in last year's tournament.
Both prospects and the rest of Team Finland play again Saturday at 4pm against Slovakia.
Click here for a full recap from the IIHF.
Bellows, Team USA defeated by Slovakia
Team USA lost for the first time since the 2016 semis, falling 3-2 to Slovakia on Thursday. Kieffer Bellows put five shots on goal, but ended the game with zero points. The 2016 first-round pick draft pick (19th overall) played just over 14 minutes (14:17) after scoring two goals in the 9-0 win against Denmark.
Bellows and Team USA will play Canada on Friday in an outdoor game at New Era Field at 3pm.
Click here for a full recap from the IIHF.

DAY 1: BELLOWS SCORES TWO, KOIVULA GETS ASSIST
By Cory Wright
Kieffer Bellows scored a pair of goals as Team USA beat Denmark 9-0 on the first day of the 2018 World Junior Hockey Championships.
Bellows scored a power-play goal in the first period to give USA a 2-0 lead - part of a 5-0 first period for the Americans - then netted his second on penalty shot in the second period.

Click here for a full recap from USA Hockey.
Otto Koivula recorded an assist in Finland's 4-2 loss to Canada on Tuesday. Koivula's helper came on a power-play goal in the second period, which cut Finland's deficit to 3-2, but Canada restored their two-goal lead shortly after.
Koivula logged 20:06 TOI. Robin Salo was reportedly sick and did not play.
Click here for a full recap from the IIHF. 
TEAM USA SCHEDULE:
TEAM FINLAND SCHEDULE:
| PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE | | --- | | DATE | TIME | OPPONENT | TV/RESULT | | DEC 26 | 4 P.M. EST | CANADA | L 4-2 | | DEC 28 | 12 P.M. EST | DENMARK | W 4-1 | | DEC 30 | 4 P.M. EST | SLOVAKIA | W 5-2 | | DEC 31 | 4 P.M. EST | USA | L 5-4 |