World Juniors Knockout Round Underway for 6 Kings Prospects

Six LA Kings prospects entered the 2026 World Juniors with gold-medal aspirations and as the tournament progresses into the knockout stage, all six remain in contention. Each team played four games in the group stage, with the top four teams in each group advancing to the single-elimination, knockout round.

The six Kings prospects represented five different countries, with all five teams advancing to the second stage of the tournament. The quarterfinals, which begin at 11 AM today, will feature four games in total, including three that feature Kings prospects, one game with Kings prospects on both sides of the ice. A recap of group play below, as well as a schedule for what’s to come over the next four days, with Kings prospects eyeing hardware.

Vojtech Cihar
The standout performer for the Kings through four games has been Czech forward Vojtech Cihar, who is tied for second in the tournament with five assists and fifth in the tournament in total scoring with seven points after the group stage. Cihar began his tournament with a goal and two assists as his team lost a high-scoring 7-5 game against Team Canada. Cihar added a goal against Denmark and two assists against Finland, including a helper on the overtime game-winning goal, to help seal Czechia’s place in the knockout round. Overall, Czechia finished with three wins, two in regulation, to secure the second seed in Group B.

Cihar has played a large role for his team, as he averaged 19:34 in time on ice playing on the first forward line. He is expected to continue to do so in the knockout rounds Czechia set to take on Switzerland in the second quarterfinal matchup today at 1:30 PM Pacific.

Brendan McMorrow
McMorrow, a seventh-round selection by the Kings in the 2025 NHL Draft, was an impact player for the United States throughout group play. McMorrow collected a first-period assist against Germany in his first game of the tournament and he was selected as his team’s Best Player in that game, which he finished with a team-high six shots on goal. He added a goal and an assist in his team’s 6-5 win over Slovakia to finish group play with three points (1-2-3) from four games played with a +4 rating, which is tied for 12th in the tournament through four games played.

McMorrow has played on either the third or fourth line in all four games, forming an impact line lower in the lineup. Look for that role to continue as Team USA takes on Finland in the third quarterfinal matchup.

Petteri Rimpinen
Opposing McMorrow and his teammates will be Kings prospect Petteri Rimpinen, who has played every minute of the tournament thus far for Team Finland, leading the way with 241:09 in minutes played. Rimpinen helped backstop his team to wins over Latvia and Denmark, including his first shutout of the tournament in an 8-0 victory over Latvia. Rimpinen entered the final game of group play with a tournament-best 1.34 goals-against average but a shootout against Team Canada led him to finishing with a 2.49 GAA from four games played.

Rimpinen is the undisputed starter for Team Finland and will be between the pipes once against tonight, as he takes on the United States in a rematch of last season’s gold-medal match, a game in which Rimpinen was excellent in an overtime defeat. He’ll look to replicate the performance, but change the result, against the Americans later on today.

Carter George
Joining Rimpinen as a starting goaltender in the tournament has been Carter George, who won all three of his starts in group play. George’s best statistical showing came in a 9-1 win over Denmark, as he stopped 12 of the 13 shots he faced to earn the victory. George was also in net for higher-scoring wins over Czechia and Finland and collected an assist in the win against the Finns on Wednesday. George finished the tournament’s first round with a 3-0-0 record, despite splits that are well below where he was at last season.

Despite a couple of big numbers against, George is expected to be between the pipes tonight as Canada takes on Slovakia in the final quarterfinal matchup of the evening. George is a big-game goaltender and is now facing single-elimination play in his final opportunity at this tournament.

Liam Greentree
Potentially joining George could be forward Liam Greentree, who has played two games for Canada thus far but has found his role to be extremely limited. Greentree played a total of just two minutes and 52 seconds in games against Czechia and Latvia and was scratched for games against Denmark and Finland. Unclear if Greentree will get an opportunity to play tonight but he’s one of the highest-scoring forwards in the OHL and should he play, he’s always a threat to find the back of the net.

Jan Chovan
Finally, finishing off the group-stage recap with forward Jan Chovan, who skated in all four games with Slovakia. Chovan skated in all four of his team’s games in the opening part of the tournament but was held off the scoresheet with a +1 rating. Chovan played a decent role, skating on the second line and should continue to feature prominently now that the tournament has advanced to the knockout round. Chovan and Slovakia will be in action against the Canadians tonight in the final quarterfinal matchup of the evening at 5:30 PM Pacific.

Quarterfinals Schedule – January 2
Sweden vs. Latvia, 11:00 AM Pacific
Czechia (Cihar) vs. Switzerland, 1:30 PM Pacific
United States (McMorrow) vs. Finland (Rimpinen), 3:00 PM Pacific
Canada (George, Greentree) vs. Slovakia (Chovan), 5:30 PM Pacific

Semifinals Schedule – January 4
Semifinal 1 – 1:30 PM Pacific
Semifinal 2 – 5:30 PM Pacific

Medal Round Schedule – January 5
Bronze-Medal Game – 1:30 PM Pacific
Gold-Medal Game – 5:30 PM Pacific

Per NHL Network's programming list, all of the above games will be broadcast live on NHL Network with the exception of the Czechia/Switzerland quarterfinal matchup, which will be shown live on ESPN+. All other matchups will be shown live on NHL Network including the USA/Finland and Canada/Slovakia games, which will include Kings prospects on both ends of the ice. At least two Kings prospects will advance to the semifinals, meaning at least one will be guaranteed to medal. The tournament will conclude on Sunday and Monday with the final games and medals decided, with a good chance that multiple Kings prospects will be in contention to leave the tournament with some hardware.