5 things learned from Day 5 of World Juniors

Saturday was the fifth day of the 2018 World Junior Championship, which is being held in Buffalo.

Results

Canada 8, Denmark 0
Czech Republic 6, Belarus 5
Sweden 7, Switzerland 2
Finland 5, Slovakia 2

Five things we learned

Canada finishes first in Group A

Canada clinched first place in Group A with an 8-0 victory against Denmark at KeyBank Center.
Brett Howden (Tampa Bay Lightning) scored twice, Robert Thomas (St. Louis Blues), Sam Steel (Anaheim Ducks), Cale Makar (Colorado Avalanche), Alex Formenton (Ottawa Senators), Michael McLeod (New Jersey Devils) and Drake Batherson (Senators) each scored a goal, and Callan Foote (Lightning) had three assists for Canada.
Goalie Carter Hart (Philadelphia Flyers) made 18 saves.
"The loss to the United States yesterday was a little disappointing, but I thought we bounced back pretty well to answer against Denmark and we're feeling pretty good about our game but there's still lots to improve," Howden said of the 4-3 loss in a shootout outdoors at New Era Field, home of the National Football League's Buffalo Bills. "We're a deep group and we knew that coming in. There are lots of guys who can play different roles and put the puck in the net. We have a really skilled and fast group, and guys are willing to adapt to any role. When you get that kind of group, it's pretty amazing."
Canada, which had three regulation wins and one shootout loss, ended the preliminary round with 10 points. It will play the fourth-place team in Group B of the quarterfinals at KeyBank Center on Tuesday.

United States focuses on Finland

The United States says it is over the excitement of defeating Canada on Friday and is looking forward to playing Finland with the chance to clinch second place in Group A at KeyBank Center on Sunday (4 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS2).
"It's over and I think we flushed some stuff out of the system with the win," U.S. coach Bob Motzko said. "After playing an 8 o'clock game (a 3-2 loss to Slovakia on Thursday) and then an afternoon football game in a snowstorm, we needed to come here and skate this afternoon. We needed to recharge the battery and get back at it."
The United States has six points, one behind Finland. It will be without right wing William Lockwood (Vancouver Canucks), who sustained an upper-body injury in the third period Friday after tripping over the left pad of Hart and crashing into the end boards. Center Logan Brown (Ottawa Senators) is questionable because of a lower-body injury.
"Brown we hope keeps getting better and there is a chance he is back, but that's out of my hands," U.S. general manager Jim Johannson said. "I doubt [Lockwood] is back for the tournament."

Gionta speaks to U.S. players

Brian Gionta, a forward who has played 1,006 NHL games spanning 15 seasons in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils, Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres, spoke to the U.S. players prior to practice at HarborCenter.
"He's played in this tournament and knows how competitive it has to be, and he gave the guys some great advice on how to compete and how to win gold," said U.S. high performance coach Sean Braziel. "Ultimately he wants to see this team go back to back so that it sets conditions for our U.S. Olympic team."
The United States won gold with a 5-4 shootout win against Canada at the 2017 WJC.
Gionta, 38, who has not played in the NHL this season, told the players about his experiences representing the United States at the WJC (1998, 1999), the World Championship (2000, 2001, 2005) and the 2006 Torino Olympics.
"I think he's got great insight being a captain for so long and being a part of USA Hockey," said U.S. captain Joey Anderson, a Devils forward prospect. "He's has a lot of experience he can share with us. He wants us to enjoy what we're doing and to make sure we stick together as a group. It was nice to hear another voice."

New Year's Eve showdown: Sweden vs. Russia

First place in Group B will be at stake when Sweden plays Russia at KeyBank Center on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS2).
Sweden won 7-2 against Switzerland at HarborCenter to move into first place with three wins and nine points. Russia has two wins and six points. Russia needs a regulation win (three points) to overtake Sweden.
"Russia is big and strong and they play a really disciplined style," Sweden coach Tomas Monten said. "They forecheck when they have the chance, otherwise they keep the team back and just try to cut the angles and the area. It'll come down to if we can play with speed and manage the puck."
Sweden captain Lias Andersson (New York Rangers) and forward Elias Pettersson (Vancouver Canucks) each had two goals and one assist, and defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (2018 NHL Draft eligible) had two assists for a third straight game.

Chytil heats up for Czech Republic

Center Filip Chytil, selected by the Rangers in the first round (No. 21) of the 2017 NHL Draft, had a goal and an assist to help lead the Czech Republic to a 6-5 win against Belarus at KeyBank Center.
Chytil, who won 83 percent of his faceoffs (15 of 18) and played 17:24, is tied for Czech Republic scoring lead with four points (two goals, two assists). He played two games for the Rangers to start the NHL season and has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 15 games for Hartford of the American Hockey League.
"I just need to play my game, whether that's here or the AHL," Chytil said. "I want to be with the New York Rangers as soon as possible. I played two NHL games and want to prove myself every day. The AHL has been a great experience. The rink is smaller than in Europe and the game is faster than in the Czech leagues; there are so many young good players. I'm just 18 years old, so the guys have really helped me out."
Belarus, which lost all four of its Group B matches, will play Game 1 of a best-of-3 relegation-round series at HarborCenter beginning Tuesday.

What's next | Complete schedule

Sunday
Czech Republic vs. Switzerland (12 p.m. ET; KeyBank Center, NHLN, TSN, RDS2)
U.S. vs. Finland (4 p.m. ET; KeyBank Center, NHLN, TSN, RDS2)
Denmark vs. Slovakia (6 p.m. ET; HarborCenter, NHLN, TSN2)
Sweden vs. Russia (8 p.m. ET; KeyBank Center; NHLN, TSN, RDS2)