The World Men’s U-18 Championship has been an action-packed event through the round-robin, with teams outplaying expectations – including the Canadians and Americans.

There were doubts about whether both teams had rosters strong enough to dominate the way they usually do at international tournaments. They proceeded to finish atop their groups with undefeated records.

Two of the first games led to some interesting seeding in the groups. Slovakia beat Finland in a shootout to ultimately sit second in Group A behind Canada. With Sweden’s only loss coming to the Americans, the game between Germany and Czechia decided third place, and it went to overtime, with Germany taking third place in the group in a surprise victory.

The unexpected standings in Group B set up some exciting matchups as we head into the quarterfinals. And remember, the U-18 Worlds not only give scouts and fans a look at many NHL draft prospects, but the tournament also gives some depth players an opportunity to prove themselves on the international stage and make a case for being selected for their nation’s world junior squad.

Let’s look at each matchup and the key players heading into them. 

Canada Vs. Czechia

5 p.m. ET

Coming into the tournament, there was talk that Canada might struggle, as the team is missing two of the top talents in the age group: Michael Misa and Matthew Schaefer. 

It hasn’t mattered as the next wave of players stepped up. 

Captain Braeden Cootes has been an animal for this Canadian club, leading the team in scoring with 10 points in four games, and his linemates, Lev Katzin and Brady Martin, are tied for second with eight points each. The top line has been a force in every game. 

Xavier Villeneuve has been a revelation on the blueline, showcasing a fluid game with excellent puck-moving ability. Quinn Beauchesne has been a solid two-way force on the blueline as well. Their goaltending duo of Jack Ivankovic and Lucas Beckman has been fantastic as well, allowing a tournament-low five goals over four games. 

The feisty Czechs have been a thorn in Canada’s side internationally over the last few years, and they will look to continue their winning ways against the top-seeded Canadians despite their odd fourth-place finish. Despite Adam Benak only playing in three games, he leads the team in scoring with six points, and the dynamic forward could easily have more. He’ll lead the offensive attack for Czechia if they hope to upset Canada, but he’s far from their only dangerous player. 

Vit Zahejsky and Vojtech Cihar have been better than their point totals have indicated, generating some very solid chances, and Adam Novotny has looked quite solid alongside Benak on the top line. Radim Mrtka has been the team’s anchor on the back end, but there is still another level to his game that he’s yet to reach.

Canada needs to keep playing a hard-working, high-energy game to ensure they win because the Czech program has been one of the fastest risers at every level of international hockey, and an upset wouldn’t be that shocking.

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USA Vs. Latvia

8 p.m. ET

Team USA has been impressive in all facets of the game. This year’s NTDP group has been questioned quite a bit, and its results throughout the year haven’t warranted high praise, but it’s peaking right when it matters, thanks to a few additions, such as NTDP alumni Cullen Potter and Will Horcoff from the NCAA. 

The team has gotten scoring from all over the lineup, which is what has made it dangerous in every game. LJ Mooney leads the team in scoring, showcasing his upper-echelon playmaking and skill after dealing with an injury in the first half of the season. Richard Gallant has been all over the ice, and he’s scored some big goals for this team. Will Moore and Mikey Berchild have been excellent as well. 

Goaltending will be the biggest question as the tournament starts to really ramp up, as Patrick Quinlan has been good but not great for the Americans. They’ll need him to step up his game and make some big saves if they expect to advance to the medal rounds. 

The Americans are going to be heavily favored going into this game against the Latvians, which have only scored four goals all tournament long. Their only win came in a shootout against Norway. Latvia lacks the firepower to keep up with just about any team in this tournament, and going up against the second-highest scoring team in the Americans will be a tall task. They’ll need excellent goaltending, an offensive hero and the Americans to make some major mistakes throughout the game. 

Sweden Vs. Finland

3 p.m. ET

The bitter rivals once again meet on the international stage. The Swedes will be the favorite heading into the game, but as we’ve seen many times in years past in this matchup, regardless of the level or the talent on the rosters, this game is always a hard-fought battle. 

Sweden has been good, but the team hasn’t quite been the favorites many expected. Filip Ekberg and Sascha Boumedienne lead the tournament in scoring with 13 and 12 points respectively, but there have been plenty of holes in the Swedish game. Their goaltending has been average at best and subpar at worst, which is an issue as they head into the elimination rounds. That will be the biggest thing they need to clean up. 

Ekberg has been able to build off his strong second half in the OHL, showcasing the skill that had him as one of the highest-touted Swedes in the 2025 NHL draft class at one point. Ivar Stenberg, a 2026 NHL draft top prospect, has been unreal at times for the Swedes. Boumedienne has been an offensive driver, using his skating and passing to rack up chance after chance. 

For Finland, they will need to score by committee because that’s always what they do. This is a development year with less high-end talent than most hockey powers. 

Max Westergard is their most dynamic forward, and he’s done an excellent job of creating chances for himself and his linemates. They will need him to show out in this game, but finding some depth scoring from players like Jere Somervuori and Eetu Orpana will be what takes them over the top. 

The Finns’ goaltending has been quite good, and that will need to continue. Patrik Kerkola has done an admirable job in net, allowing the Finns to play their classic low-event hockey that they have found success with. If Kerkola isn’t on his game, the Swedes could pull away early in this game.

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Slovakia Vs. Germany

1 p.m. ET

The Slovak squad doesn’t have a ton of high-end draft talent, and the German group is likely just stoked to be here. 

Tomas Chrenko leads the Slovaks in scoring, carrying the load offensively while players like Michal Svrcek and Jan Chovan have been relatively quiet. Getting those two going would give the Slovaks a much more dangerous attack.

Aside from the game against Canada, Michal Pradel has been unbelievable in net, recording two shutouts. His stellar play will be key in this game, taking on a German team that just doesn’t have the firepower to really compete against the top teams in this tournament. Slovakia may not be one of the true top teams, but they can at least provide a challenge to those teams. 

Germany doesn’t have a standout player on the roster, and they haven’t maintained the momentum from the generation that gave them Tim Stutzle, JJ Peterka, and Moritz Seider. This year’s group is led by Carlos Handel, Elias Schneider and Dustin Willhoft, who are fine U-18 players but not difference-makers on this stage. 

This will be an interesting matchup because Germany isn’t expected to do much, and they have no pressure. If they can get out to a quick lead, they could put Slovakia on their heels. Slovakia needs to play their game, push the pace, and overwhelm Germany with their skill. It could be the tightest matchup of the quarters, or it could be a blowout. It’s a bit of a wild card, completely dependent on how Slovakia plays.

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