Sweden and Czechia are guaranteed medals, while Canada and Finland will battle for bronze after wild back-and-forth semifinals on Sunday. Here's the full medal day preview.
The penultimate day at the world juniors delivered exactly the kind of hype that hockey fans were looking for.
We had everything. Highlight-reel goals, massive stops from netminders, big moments from the biggest names, and unsung heroes delivering under the brightest lights.
At the end of the day in Minnesota, Sweden beat their rivals, Finland, in a crazy game, while Czechia eliminated the Canadians for the third straight year. Sweden and Czechia will play for gold, while Canada and Finland will try to win bronze.
Let's process what happened on Sunday before previewing the final day of the 2026 World Junior Championship, where, for the first time in 13 years, a team other than Canada, Finland and the United States will win gold.
World Juniors Semifinal Day Featured Back-And-Forth Games, Unusual Moments, Delight And Heartbreak
In the first semifinal, Sweden and Finland went toe-to-toe with all sorts of craziness throughout the game.
Sweden opened the scoring just over 30 seconds in on a weak shot that beat star Finnish netminder Petteri Rimpinen. After Finland's Atte Joki and Sweden's Ivar Stenberg traded absolute snipes, the Finns got lucky. With a mess in front of the Swedish netminder, a shot popped up around the crease, and as Alfons Freij went to knock it out of the air, he hit it off his own netminder and into the Swedish net.
Despite the self-inflicted wound, the Swedes continued to push on, and Eddie Genborg scored on his own rebound from below the goal line after he and Stenberg worked a nice passing play. Finland's Joona Saarelainen then scored from in tight with six minutes left in the third to tie the game. Finland, once again, would not go down without a fight.
The game went to overtime as both netminders made a few really impressive saves late in regulation. Despite at least four beautiful chances for Sweden's Viggo Bjorck and waves of attacks from Finland, a shootout was needed.
After a goal by both teams, Anton Frondell ultimately ended the shootout with a beautiful five-hole goal to send the Swedes to the gold medal game.
Sweden's Stenberg Shows Why He Is A Top NHL Draft Prospect In Shootout Win Vs. Finland In World Junior Semifinal
The prospect who has started to top some NHL draft rankings and has been "like a leader" for Sweden had a goal and an assist to advance to the gold medal game.
The second game of the night featured the renewal of the rivalry between Canada and Czechia. Right away, you could tell the teams did not like each other. There was a bit of extra pushing after the whistle, and players were finishing checks along the boards.
When Canada opened the scoring on the power play, Czechia answered less than two minutes later. The Czechs then took the lead a few minutes into the second frame and were buzzing, forcing Canada to run around their own end. But just over halfway through the frame, Zayne Parekh tied the game on the power play, stealing the momentum back.
One rare moment came in the second period, when Michael Hage was hooked on a breakaway and awarded a penalty shot. Hage came in from the left, cut across the top of the crease and tried to tuck the puck by the Czech netminder on the far side, but Michal Orsulak kicked his leg out and tripped Hage. The referees gave Hage a second chance on the penalty shot. Hage went to the same move, and Orsulak was ready for it, stopping it without tripping him and then giving a fist pump that flipped the momentum on its head.
Minutes later, Ethan MacKenzie turned the puck over in the neutral zone, and Czechia took the lead on a beautiful cross-seam pass from Max Curran to Adam Benak.
The third period started with an expected Canadian pushback. Cole Reschny pulled Canada back into a tie, but Vojtech Cihar, who always elevates his game in a Czech sweater, danced by defenders and finished a highlight-reel goal, going bar-down from in tight to retake the lead for Czechia.
Late in the game, Canadian captain Porter Martone got himself to the net to bury a rebound by tucking the puck by the Czech netminder. He celebrated like he just saved his team's tournament.
But Czechia weren't done yet. They kept pushing, and amid a broken play by Curran, the puck deflected off a skate and once again gave the Czechs the lead late in the game. They added an empty-netter and clinched a berth in the gold medal game.
Team USA's Future Uncertain Following World Juniors Quarterfinal Exit
Following its elimination from Finland in the quarterfinal of the 2026 World Junior Championship, there is an uncertain future surrounding Team USA and its prospects.
Bronze Medal Game: Finland vs. Canada (4:30 p.m. ET)
The third-place game will be a rematch of the exciting New Year's Eve tilt between Canada and Finland.
The Finns got out to a hot start in that game, but the Canadians eventually woke up and took over. It was an exciting game that featured the best and worst of both teams.
The Finns suffered a heartbreaking loss in the semifinals, but they have always been able to refocus on what's in front of them.
It's been said a million times by now, but the Finns are always greater than the sum of their parts. The biggest reason for that in the past two years has been Rimpinen in net. He was stellar against the Swedes. Despite his counterpart, Love Harenstam, making more saves in the semifinal, the degree of difficulty Rimpinen had to deal with was far greater. Rimpinen has to be the best player on the ice for the Finns if they hope to win.
Offense has been truly by committee for the Finns. They haven't seen the best of their top offensive options, such as Aatos Koivu or Emil Hemming. Instead, it's been Heikki Ruohonen and Jasper Kuhta leading the way offensively. They've had big goals from Joona Saarelainen and Roope Vesterinen as well. This isn't a team with a few superstars or well-known prospects leading the way; it's a group of young men pulling in one direction for a common purpose.
The blueline has been solid but unspectacular. Aron Kiviharju has been a very solid puck-mover, and Lasse Boelius has put up points, but outside of those two, the Finnish defense is very focused on staying strong in their own end and simply trying to limit the work Rimpinen has to do.
At the other end, it feels like Canada has lived life on the edge throughout this tournament.
From the back-and-forth games against Czechia to the overtime win against Latvia and the slow start against Finland, Canada have never felt fully in control of any game aside from their decisive wins against Denmark and Slovakia. Canada must play a complete game if they want to come out of this tournament with a medal.
Up front, Team Canada has had juice offensively, especially on the power play. Gavin McKenna has been a lethal threat with the man advantage. Michael Hage has been the perfect complement on the other side of the ice. Michael Misa, Porter Martone and Tij Iginla were fantastic offensive generators throughout this tournament.
On paper, this team has the offensive firepower to outscore their problems, but their problems were often the mistakes they made and the undisciplined play they have become known for.
Canada have had some really up-and-down performances on the back end. Zayne Parekh has been unreal in the offensive end, saving Canada a few times with his ability to be a one-man offensive machine. Ben Danford and Kashawn Aitcheson have been really solid defensive players. They just haven't had enough generated from the back end outside of Parekh to really get to that truly elite status. It's a large part of the reason they are playing for bronze, not gold.
'Every Game Against Canada Is Dramatic': Czechia Eliminate Canadians From World Juniors Yet Again
Czechia played smart, and Canada "got some stupid penalties" in the renewal of one of the world juniors' thrilling new rivalries.
Gold Medal Game: Sweden vs. Czechia (8:30 p.m. ET)
Sweden have been the best team in this tournament since Day 1. But Team Czechia hasn't cared who was on the other side of the ice; they've just gone out and slugged it out.
That sets up one heck of a gold medal game. Sweden’s high-flying offense up against Czechia's fast and physical play should be incredible hockey.
The Swedes have been a wagon offensively. Frondell, Stenberg and Bjorck were named their top three players of the tournament after the semifinal, but it could have gone to Berglund, Victor Eklund, Eddie Genborg or a defender like Freij or Leo Sahlin Wallenius. All of them have at least six points, and they've each had big moments throughout this tournament.
There's always been someone to step up. If Frondell and Eklund aren't at their best, Stenberg and Genborg have stepped up. Freij and Sahlin Wallenius have been stellar puck-movers, but they couldn't do what they've done without the two-way play of Sascha Boumedienne or the defensively stout William Hakansson.
Netminder Harenstam will be the Swedes' X-factor in the gold medal game. He's done quite well, but he hasn't had a standout performance. If he can do that, he can help capture gold for Sweden.
NHL Teams Should Take A Shot On Tomas Galvas As Czechs Advance To World Juniors Semifinals
Czechia defenseman Tomas Galvas hasn't been drafted in the past two years. With his performance during the 2026 World Junior Championship, should a team consider taking a chance on him?
Czechia will play for their fourth straight medal at the world juniors, an unprecedented run for the country. While they are guaranteed silver or gold, capping this four-year run as world junior champions would be poetic.
They have consistently found ways to win over the last few years, pushing teams with speed and physicality to get to this point once again. So many of the players on this team have played big roles for Czechia at the U-20 or U-18 levels over the last few years.
Tomas Galvas and Adam Jiricek will get their third medal each, and they've been outstanding at this event to help get this team there.
Galvas has been one of the heroes for Czechia at this event, truly showcasing his puck-moving ability, skill and two-way prowess. The undrafted defender may be small, but his impact was nearly immeasurable at this event for Czechia.
Jiricek has been a two-way force, showing just how valuable he could be for the St. Louis Blues one day. They've been the pillars that this blueline has been built on, but players like Max Psenicka and Jakub Fibigir have been stellar in their own right.
Up front, this team has gotten contributions from all over the lineup. Cihar has led the way, but Vaclav Nestrasil and Petr Sikora have been key players throughout this tournament. Benak has gotten going in recent games, which is scary because he might be the most skilled forward Czechia has.
This game has the potential to be an instant classic. Sweden will want to prove they can win the big game, and Czechia will look to continue being the giant-killers. The gold medal game at the 2026 World Junior Championship should be a great one.
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