World Junior Championships roundup: Switzerland upsets Finland in OT

Monday was the first day of the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, which is being held at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Avenir Centre in Moncton, New Brunswick.

Day 1 games

Switzerland 3, Finland 2 (OT) — Attilio Biasca (2023 draft eligible) scored 41 seconds into overtime for Switzerland in a Group B game at Avenir Centre.

Lian Bichsel (Dallas Stars) pulled the puck out of traffic in the right corner in the Finland zone and passed to Biasca, who scored from the right face-off circle.

“Two guys were battling in the corner,” Biasca told the IIHF website. “I was staying a little high, and then Bichsel made a great play to me. And I tried to shoot it and it worked.”

Lorenzo Canonica (2023 draft eligible) and Jeremy Jabola (2023 draft eligible) also scored for Switzerland. Kevin Pasche (2023 draft eligible) made 14 saves.

Kalle Vaisanen (New York Rangers) had a goal and an assist for Finland and Konsta Kapanen (2023 draft eligible) scored. Aku Koskenvuo (Vancouver Canucks) made 24 saves.

“I thought we played afraid to win,” Finland forward Brad Lambert (Winnipeg Jets) said. “We weren’t attacking enough. We didn’t win enough 1-on-1 battles. We didn’t have the puck enough. We just didn’t play fast enough. We’re faster than them, but we played too slow, too careful, and it cost us.”

Kapanen gave Finland a 1-0 lead at 2:24 of the second period when he scored off the rebound of a Vaisanen shot before Canonica tied it at 12:54 with a shot from the slot.

Jabola put Switzerland ahead 2-1 at 4:43 of the third period when he poked in a loose puck in the slot.

Vaisanen tied the game at 8:09 when he took the puck off the wall, cut to the slot and beat Pasche.

Each team plays Tuesday, Finland against Slovakia (11 a.m.), Switzerland against Latvia (4 p.m. ET).

On Tap for Day 1

All games on NHL Network in U.S., TSN and RDS in Canada

Sweden vs. Austria (1:30 p.m. ET) — The goal is to score goals for Sweden, something the bronze-medal winning team struggled to do at the 2022 WJC. Despite enviable offensive ability, Sweden scored 20 goals in seven games (2.86 per game), and five in three games in the medal round. Sweden has six first-round NHL draft picks among its forwards, including Isak Rosen (Buffalo Sabres), who tied for the team lead with four goals in August. But they’ll need big contributions from Filip Bystedt (San Jose Sharks), Jonathan Lekkerimaki (Vancouver Canucks), Fabian Lysell (Boston Bruins), Liam Ohgren (Minnesota Wild) and Noah Ostlund (Buffalo Sabres). Leo Carlsson, a projected top-five pick in the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft, will likely play a top-six role for Sweden as well. Jonas Dobnig (2023 draft eligible) and Ian Scherzer (2023 draft eligible) return after scoring two of Austria’s four goals in August. Defenseman David Reinbacher, who had two assists in August, is a B-rated prospect in NHL Central Scouting’s preliminary players to watch list presented by BioSteel.

Latvia vs. United States (4 p.m. ET) — Latvia has 15 players back from its surprising trip to the quarterfinals in August, including forward Sandis Vilmanis (Florida Panthers), who has 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) in 29 games with Sarnia of the OHL. The United States will be looking to improve from its disappointing 4-2 loss to Czechia in the quarterfinals. The defense, led by Luke Hughes (New Jersey Devils), is skilled and mobile, and the top line of Cutter Gauthier (Philadelphia Flyers), Logan Cooley (Arizona Coyotes) and Jimmy Snuggerud (St. Louis Blues) could be one of the most dynamic in the tournament. Also keep an eye on forward Charlie Stramel, a top 2023 draft prospect who likely will start in a bottom-six role but could work his way up the lineup.

Czechia vs. Canada (6:30 p.m. ET) — Czechia came up just short of winning its first WJC medal in August when it lost 3-1 to Sweden in the bronze medal game. Jiri Kulich (Buffalo Sabres) is the top returning scorer after he had seven points (two goals, five assists) in seven games. Czechia’s strength could be its defense, led by David Jiricek (Columbus Blue Jackets), Stanislav Svozil (Columbus Blue Jackets) and David Spacek (Minnesota Wild), all of whom played in the 2022 WJC. They’ll face a fierce challenge from Canada, the defending champion. Forward Connor Bedard, the projected top pick of the 2023 draft, is back after he had eight points (four goals, four assists) in seven games in August and has looked strong in pre-tournament games with five points (two goals, three assists) in wins against Switzerland and Finland. A top line of Bedard, Shane Wright (Seattle Kraken) and Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) could be dominant, and the second line of Adam Fantilli (2023 draft eligible), Logan Stankoven (Dallas Stars) and Dylan Guenther (Arizona Coyotes) could be just as productive. Benjamin Gaudreau (San Jose Sharks) is expected to start in goal.

Quick links

World Junior Championship predictions

Group A preview

Group B preview

World Juniors Championship rosters 

Tournament schedule

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