A look at which WHLers had standout performances at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship.
The 2026 World Juniors is underway and features plenty of talent from the WHL. Every day, THN's WHL team will be highlighting standout performances from the tournament. Here are the WHL standouts from December 28, 2025.
Game Results:
Sweden 4, Switzerland 2
Finland 8, Latvia 0
Matias Vanhanen- Everett Silvertps/Finland
Mathias Vanhanen had a strong performance for Finland. The Everett Silvertips forward had two assists in 17:09 of ice time. Vanhanen was also named Finland's player of the game on Sunday.
Julius Miettinen- Everett Silvertips/Finland
After missing Finland's first game, Julius Miettinen made his debut at the 2026 World Juniors. The Silvertips forward had an assist while going 13 for 18 in the faceoff dot. Miettinen, who wore an "A" for Finland, showed off his chemistry with Vanhanen as, just like in Everett, the two played on a line together.
Veeti Väisänen- Medicine Hat Tigers/Finland
The third WHL member of Finland's squad is Medicine Hat Tigers defenceman Veeti Väisänen. While he didn't record a point, the 19-year-old finished the night with two shots on goal in 16:53 of ice time. Väisänen is playing in his second consecutive World Juniors and is looking to build off last year's Silver Medal.
Veeti Väisänen of the Medicine Hat Tigers (Photo Credit: Mark Peterson/Prince Albert Raiders/WHL)December 29 Schedule:
Germany vs Sweden, 10 am PT
Finland vs Czechia, 12:30 pm PT
Slovakia vs USA, 3:00 pm PT
Canada vs Denmark, 5:30 pm PT
Make sure you bookmark THN's WHL site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
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