The World Juniors are simply a different beast.
Held through the holidays, it’s a tournament that builds core memories for any die-hard hockey fan.
On Friday night, we were all shown why.
Exactly one year to the day, Canada gave Team Latvia a cruel beating, earning a 10-0 landslide victory. This time, the hockey gods had a different idea.
Despite sporting a roster featuring 11 first-round NHL picks and three other high-profile players who are expected to go high at the next two drafts, Canada’s offensive weapons seized up.
The bad luck kicked off in the first period, where top-5 2025 Draft hopeful Matthew Schaefer collided with the post off of a breakaway chance and did not return. On Saturday, he was announced out for the tournament with a broken collarbone.
That would be the biggest talking point of the opening period, as neither team could find a goal.
The host team did find the net in the second period, where Jett Luchanko pulled off a beautiful move off a shorthanded goal to capitalize on a Lativa giveaway.
Yet, despite holding a 33-13 shot advantage through two periods, that was all Canada could find offensively. And Latvia made them pay.
While on another powerplay, Latvia stunned the hockey world by evening the score after a threaded cross-ice feed from Bruno Osmanis found Eriks Mateiko for his second of the tournament.
Order was restored a little over one minute later, however, when Calum Ritchie blasted a one-timer on a powerplay of their own to regain the lead and allow the host country to breathe a sigh of relief.
Once again, that relief was short-lived. The Latvians answered on another powerplay. This time, it was Peteris Bulans with the blast from the point to pick up his first goal of the tournament to even the score late in the third.
That was the final goal we’d see.
The two teams played back-and-forth in a 3-on-3 overtime before the game had to be settled in a shootout.
After 15 scoreless attempts from each team – credit to each goaltender – the unthinkable happened…
Latvia’s initial goalscorer, Eriks Mateiko, wired a perfectly placed snapshot to beat Jack Ivankovic’s post and commit one of, if not the biggest, upsets in World Junior history and defeat the Canadians for the first time in history.
Reminiscent of an Arturs Silovs World Championship performance, Linards Feldbergs made 55 saves for a heroic performance to etch his name on Latvia’s history pages. With two points on the standings, the win gives Latvia much-needed wiggle room for the remainder of the tournament, with Switzerland, Kazakhstan, and Germany all sitting winless.
The loss is a stark reminder for Canada that no team offers easy points. They’ll regroup and take on another winless team in Germany on Sunday. But this time, they may not take them so lightly.
Sponsored by bet365
