Ostlund, Wahlberg awarded silver medals, Kulich leads WJC with 12 points
Buffalo Sabres prospects overall were impactful at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden, as 2022 first-rounder Jiri Kulich led the 11-day tournament in points and won a bronze medal with Czechia and Sweden’s Noah Ostlund and Anton Wahlberg finished with silver medals after losing to Team USA 6-2 in the gold medal game on Friday.
Here is a final recap of how Sabres prospects fared at the WJC:
Jiri Kulich (Czechia): 12 points (6 goals, 6 assists) in seven games
The 19-year-old finished off an excellent showing at the WJC as the centerpiece of Czechia’s comeback 8-5 victory over Finland in the bronze medal game on Friday. Kulich had four points in the contest, with a goal and two assists coming in the third period to erase a 5-3 Finnish lead. He finished in a tie with USA’s Cutter Gauthier in tournament scoring with 12 points and was selected as one of the tournament’s top three forwards.
Noah Ostlund (Sweden): 10 points (3 goals, 7 assists) in seven games
Ostlund was only superseded by linemate Jonathan Lekkerimaki in scoring for Sweden in their run to the championship game, and his importance to his club was illustrated by leading all of Tre Kronor’s forwards in ice time in the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the championship game against the US.
Maxim Strbak (Slovakia): 7 points (1 goal, 6 assists) in five games
The Sabres 2023 second-rounder finished his third WJC second behind only Sweden’s Theo Lindstein in defensive scoring for the tournament and in two fewer games. The remarkable fact is that the 18-year-old is young enough to play in his fourth WJC for his country next December in Ottawa.
Anton Wahlberg (Sweden): 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) in seven games
The 18-year-old forward was not an offensive force in the tournament but did use his size effectively in front of opposition nets and was more of a facilitator. Wahlberg is likely a shoo-in to be on Sweden’s roster for their next tournament.
Norwin Panocha (Germany): 1 point (1 goal, 0 assists) in five games
The 18-year-old played significant minutes for Germany in five games, including nearly 21 minutes in their final contest, a 5-4 overtime win over Norway to avoid relegation for next year’s tournament.
Matthew Savoie (Canada): 1 point (0 goals, 1 assist) in four games
Savoie’s disappointing tournament went hand-in-hand with Canada’s early exit. The 19-year-old suffered a lower-body injury late in the preliminary round, but gutted it out and returned for the quarter-final game against Czechia.
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