Day four at the 2026 World Junior Championship delivered plenty of action, and Vancouver Canucks prospects were involved at both ends of the schedule.

The day opened with Wilson Björck drawing into the lineup for Sweden, marking his World Junior debut in a matchup against Pool A’s bottom-ranked Germany.

As expected, Sweden controlled the game from start to finish, rolling to an 8–1 victory. Björck dressed as the team’s 13th forward and saw limited usage, logging five shifts for a total of 4:35 of ice time. He registered one shot on goal during his brief appearance.

His younger brother, Viggo Björck (2026 draft eligible), continued his strong tournament, scoring twice in the lopsided win and further cementing himself as one of Sweden’s top performers through the round robin.

Later in the day, Braeden Cootes and Team Canada took the ice against Pool B’s cellar-dweller Denmark.

Skating as Canada’s fourth-line winger, Cootes made the most of his opportunity. Just before the midway point of the opening period, he received a slick backhand pass from Tij Iginla and quickly snapped a short-side shot past the goaltender to score his first goal of the tournament. The goal would eventually end up as the game-winning tally.

Cootes finished the game with a goal, a tournament-high three shots, and was a plus-1 despite continued limited minutes (9:17).

Leading the charge for Canada was top 2026 draft-eligible Gavin McKenna, who recorded his first three goals of the tournament. His night was capped by one of the event’s highlight-reel goals, as he undressed the goaltender to complete the hat-trick performance.

Porter Martone (two goals, one assist), Michael Misa (one goal, two assists), and Brady Martin also chipped in with three-point nights as Canada cruised to victory.

With the wins, both Sweden and Canada have now secured top-two finishes in their respective groups, setting up pivotal final round-robin games.

Both Sweden and Canada will enjoy Tuesday off before returning to action on New Year’s Eve, when each will battle for first place in their respective groups.

Sweden will face the host team (USA) for top spot in Group A at 3:00 pm PT, while Canada will face Finland at 5:30 pm PT.

Meanwhile, Switzerland gears up for a matchup against Germany on Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. PT. The Swiss will close out their round robin on New Year’s Eve against Slovakia, a crucial game that will determine placement heading into the elimination round.