Friday is the fourth day of the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, which is being held in Gothenburg, Sweden.
On Tap for Day 4
All games on NHL Network in U.S., TSN in Canada
Norway vs. Slovakia (6 a.m. ET) -- Goalie Adam Gajan (Chicago Blackhawks) will look to continue his impressive start for Slovakia (2-0-0-0) in a Group B match at Frolundaborg. Gajan, selected in the second round (No. 35) of the 2023 NHL Draft, was named the best goalie of the 2023 WJC. The 19-year-old has a 1.00 goals-against average and .969 save percentage in two starts this year for Slovakia, which has opened the tournament with two straight wins for the first time since 2002. Slovakia has been led on offense by forward Servac Petrovsky (Minnesota Wild), who has four points (three goals, one assist). Norway (0-0-0-2), which lost 4-1 to the United States on Tuesday and 8-1 to Czechia on Wednesday, is playing in the top division at the WJC for the first time since 2014.
Latvia vs. Finland (8:30 a.m. ET) -- Finland (0-0-0-2) looks to get back into medal-round contention in the Group A bracket at Scandinavium after a 5-2 loss to Canada on Tuesday and 4-3 loss to Germany on Wednesday. The victory by Germany was its first against Finland at the World Junior Championship in 26 tries (1-0-0-25). Finland last won the World Juniors in 2019 (Vancouver). Latvia (0-0-0-2), the only country not to score a goal in two tournament games, has six players back from last year's team that swept Austria in the best-of-3 relegation round to remain at the top level of the World Juniors.
Czechia vs. United States (11 a.m. ET) -- The United States (2-0-0-0) looks to continue its business-like approach at Frolundaborg after winning its opening two games against Norway and Switzerland by a combined 15-4. The U.S. has won seven of the past eight games against Czechia at the World Juniors and is 14-2-1-8 with one tie all-time at the tournament. "Czechia is an excellent team," U.S. coach David Carle said. "They're big, skilled, structured, and they pose a lot of challenges. We're looking forward to it." The United States is having much success on special teams, going 4-for-9 (44 percent) on the power play and 5-for-5 on the penalty kill. Czechia (1-0-0-1) rebounded from a 6-2 loss to Slovakia on Tuesday with an 8-1 win against Norway on Wednesday. Forward Jiri Kulich (Buffalo Sabres) has five points (three goals, two assists) and fowrward Eduard Sale (Seattle Kraken) has four points (three goals, one assist) for Czechia, which came up short in the 2023 gold-medal game, losing 3-2 in overtime against Canada. It was the country's first gold-medal game since winning championships in 2000 and 2001. "We try to play like one player, be team players and work together ... that's the key," Kulich said.
Canada vs. Sweden (1:30 p.m. ET) -- The winner likely will earn the top seed in Group A in Scandinavium. Canada (2-0-0-0), the two-time and defending World Juniors champion, has been led on offense by 17-year-old forward Macklin Celebrini, an A rated skater on NHL Central Scouting's preliminary players to watch list and projected No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. Celebrini has six points (two goals, four assists), seven shots on goal, and has averaged 13:26 of ice time in two games. "[Celebrini's] play speaks for itself," Canada defenseman Ty Nelson (Kraken) said. "Just watching him in practice and games, you can see he's a special player. So being able to share the ice with him is an honor." Canada has received goals from 10 different players and has outscored the opposition 15-2 in victories against Finland on Tuesday and Latvia on Wednesday. Goalie Mathis Rousseau (2024 eligible) is expected to make his third straight start for Canada. The 19-year-old has a 1.00 GAA and .958 save percentage in two wins. Canada is also clicking on special teams, going 3-for-6 (50 percent) on the power play and 8-for-9 (88 percent) on the penalty kill. Sweden (2-0-0-0), which has outscored the opposition 11-0 in wins against Latvia on Tuesday and Germany on Thursday, will certainly get the emotional support from the hometown faithful. Forward Otto Stenberg (St. Louis Blues), who had a hat trick in a 5-0 win against Germany, has four points in the tournament.
Quick links
World Junior Championship rosters
