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World Juniors: Canada falls to Czechia, while Sweden will play for Gold; what it means for Canucks prospects
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Photo credit: Steven Ellis
Dave Hall
Jan 5, 2026, 09:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 5, 2026, 10:48 EST
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The World Juniors never seem to disappoint.
And the semifinal stage of the 2026 World Junior Championship delivered exactly what it promised: drama, rivalry, and heartbreak.
With four teams remaining in Minnesota, the day’s slate featured a historic European showdown between Sweden and Finland, followed by another chapter in a growing rivalry between Canada and Czechia.
The Vancouver Canucks had representatives in each game, with Braeden Cootes and Wilson Björck suiting up. Both may have participated, but only one Canucks prospect survived the night as a winner.

Sweden survives Finland in shootout thriller

You won’t find many storied rivalries within the International hockey stage quite like this one, and this Finland versus Sweden match wasted no time finding its rhythm.
Just 35 seconds into the contest, Sweden opened the scoring on one the Finnish netminder would like back. Receiving the puck on the entry, Linus Eriksson released a relatively innocent wrist shot from distance. Finnish goaltender Petteri Rimpinen, who was exceptional for much of the afternoon, appeared to misjudge the release as the puck slipped up and over his shoulder to make it 1–0.
Finland, as they so often do in this rivalry, didn’t flinch. They settled into the game and pushed back late in the first period, finally breaking through when Atte Joki received the puck at the top of the circles and rifled a snap shot short-side to even the score heading into intermission.
Canucks prospect Wilson Björck, drawing into the lineup for the first time since Game 3, was on the ice for the goal and would carry that minus-1 for the remainder of the night.
Sweden regained control early in the second period. Off a clean drop pass from Jack Berglund, Ivar Stenberg stepped into a snap shot through traffic that found the back of the net to restore the Swedish lead.
Once again, Finland had an answer — and once again, it came quickly.
Following a scramble in front, an attempted Swedish clearance went about as bad as it could go. Following the Finnish shot attempt, the puck bounced off the glass toward the front of the net. In an effort to clear the crease, the puck was inadvertently batted off the back of the Swedish goaltender and into the net for an own goal that tied the game.
Before the period could end, it was Sweden’s turn to catch a break. Bobbling a centring feed from Stenberg was Eddie Genborg, who followed the puck before sending it toward the slot. With Peterri Rimpinen’s stick stuck in the mesh of the net, the puck bounced off his pad before trickling over the line to give Sweden yet another lead.
Sweden appeared on their way to victory before Finland came crawling back in the late stages of the third period. Despite an initial save off a point shot, a rebound kicked directly into a dangerous territory, where Joona Saarelainen was waiting to bury it and force overtime.
Extra time was frantic and wide open. The Swedish duo of Stenberg and Viggo Björck, both 2026 draft eligibles, repeatedly broke through Finland’s structure. Björck alone was sent in on four separate breakaways, each time turned aside by Rimpinen.
After Björck took a late penalty, Finland pressed hard to find the final blow on the ensuing power play. Pressing for nearly the entire two-minute stretch, Sweden’s netminder was forced to make several key saves before the clock expired with the score still deadlocked.
The shootout felt inevitable and fitting for this storied matchup.
Finland struck first, but Sweden responded through Jack Berglund to keep their hopes alive as the final shooter.
Then, after previously ringing a shot off both posts earlier in his previous attempt, Anton Frondell stepped in and delivered the winner with a slick five-hole finish to send Sweden to the gold medal game for the second time in three years.
The result marked the ninth straight one-goal game between the two nations, with Sweden now holding the edge with five wins. Björck finished the night skating 7:01, minus-1.

Czechia stuns Canada…again

Canada entered the semifinal looking to finally turn the page on a Czech program that had eliminated them in each of the past two tournaments. The game remained scoreless for over 15 minutes, with neither side able to break through.
Eventually, it was Tij Iginla who opened the scoring. After Michael Misa battled at the side of the net following a Zayne Parekh point shot, he slid a perfect feed into the slot where Iginla was waiting to finish and give Canada the lead.
The response from Czechia was immediate. Capitalizing on a Braeden Cootes giveaway, a weak backhand shot from Tomáš Galvas created chaos in front before Max Curran pounced on the loose puck, roofing it up and over a sliding Jack Ivankovic.
That score trickled into the second, where Czechia seized the momentum early. Adam Titlbach followed up his own attempt, settling into the slot before snapping a perfectly placed shot over Ivankovic’s glove to give the Czechs their first lead of the night.
Just past the midway point of the period, the Czechs got themselves into penalty trouble, where Canada answered on a two-man advantage. With Michael Hage and Zayne Parehk playing give-and-go, the Calgary Flames defender snapped a point shot that deflected off a Czech defender and found its way into the net.
With time winding down in the period, Michael Hage was sprung on a breakaway and hauled down, earning a penalty shot. With an attempt to put his team up late in the period, he elected for a backhand forehand move, but was tripped up by the Czech netminder.
In a play rarely seen, Hage was awarded a second chance to reshoot his attempt. Electing to make the identical move, he lost control of the forehand this time around to let the opportunity slip by.
The miss loomed large.
Moments later, Adam Benak struck for his first of the tournament on a cross-ice one-timer to reclaim the lead with time winding down in the middle frame.
But Canada came out with something to prove, with most of their push coming from Calgary Flames’ Cole Reschny. Collecting the Hage pass, Reschny noticed the lack of pressure and turned toward the front of the net to jam home his first of the tournament.
But midway through the period, the Czechs continued to prove their relentless drive. With an incredible power move, Vojtech Cihar went in and out on a Canadian defender before roofing the puck on Ivankovic.
Despite having to kill off a late penalty, Canada pressed late to finally tie the game when Porter Martone jammed home a loose puck near the crease to give his team all the momentum.
But that momentum was squashed quickly, as the Czechs put the nail in the coffin with a response a minute later. In a broken sequence near the net, the puck deflected off a pair of skates and trickled over the line before a Canadian defender could clear it away, sealing yet another stunning Czech victory.
They would add an empty net goal, and for the third straight year, Czechia eliminated Canada — this time punching their ticket to the gold medal game.
Despite Canada losing one of their top forwards in Brady Martin, Braeden Cootes continued in his fourth-line role and was a minus-1 to finish the night with 9:02 minutes of ice time.
With Sweden advancing, Wilson Björck will now have a chance to become the first Vancouver Canucks prospect to win gold at the World Juniors since Toni Utunen accomplished the feat with Finland in 2019.

What’s next?

Braeden Cootes and Canada will look to fend off Finland to earn a Bronze Medal and their first piece of hardware in three years. If successful, it will be their first Bronze Medal since 2012. The puck drops at 1:30 pm PT.
As for Björck and his Swedish squad, they will look to capture their first Gold Medal since 2012, as they take on the Czechs at 5:30 pm PT.

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