St. Louis Blues goaltender Love Harenstam wins gold and best goaltender with Sweden, while Adam Jiricek wins silver and best defenseman with Czechia at the 2026 World Junior Championship.
The St. Louis Blues may have only sent two players to the 2026 World Junior Championship, but they did not disappoint.
Love Harenstam and Adam Jiricek met in the finals as Sweden and Czechia looked to end their decade-long droughts without a gold medal.
Harenstam backed Sweden in six of their seven games, posting a perfect 6-0-0 record with a .911 save percentage and a 2.43 goals-against average. In the finals, he turned aside all but two of the shots he faced late in the third period, was honored as the goaltender of the tournament, and was named to the All-Star team. Sweden finally ended a 14-year drought, winning gold after defeating Czechia 4-2.
The Blues selected the 18-year-old in the sixth round (179th overall) in the 2025 NHL draft, and he has quickly developed into a potential steal of the draft. He now adds a gold medal to his impressive international resume, which includes silver and bronze at the U-18s, silver at the WJAC-19, and bronze at the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup.
Jiricek was dynamite for Czechia. He was a force on both sides of the puck, scoring five goals and six points in seven games while forming half of a shutdown duo with Seattle Kraken prospect Jakub Fibigr. The 19-year-old ate heavy minutes for Czechia, featuring on both the power play and the penalty kill.
His outstanding play earned him defenseman of the tournament honors, adding a silver medal to his world junior medal collection, which already includes two bronze medals.
Jiricek is enjoying an outstanding season, in large part because he's remained healthy. He was a standout performer during rookie camp and training camp and has carried that into his second OHL campaign. He's scored 10 goals and 29 points in 25 games with the Brantford Bulldogs.
Fellow Blues prospect Adam Jecho was supposed to play for Czechia, but he injured his hand prior to the start of the tournament.
Jecho and Jiricek have now aged out of the tournament, but Harenstam can return next year and backstop Sweden as they attempt to win back-to-back gold medals.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.