For hockey fans around the world – especially in North America – the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship has become almost as much of a holiday tradition as Santa Claus, overeating and presents under the tree.

As always, the much-anticipated event featuring the next wave of National Hockey League stars gets underway the day after Christmas as the 10-best under-20 hockey-playing nations descend upon Ottawa, Ontario, for the 48^th official 2024 WJC. The puck drops on the 2025 tournament Tuesday, Dec. 26, at noon EST as Sweden, winners of the silver medal a year ago, takes on Slovakia at TD Place.

Looking for its first-ever back-to-back WJC gold medals, the United States opens play Dec. 26 at 2:30 p.m. EST, at Canadian Tire Centre against Germany. Canada hits the ice Dec. 26 at 7:30 p.m. with a challenging opening matchup vs. Finland.

All 2024 WJC games can be seen on NHL Network in the United States and TSN in Canada.

The U.S., Canada and Finland find themselves in Group A, a true “Group of Death,” along with Germany and Latvia. In 15 tournaments since 2010, those three nations have accounted for 13 gold medals, six silver and six bronze. Canada and the United States have captured gold five times each in that span, while Finland has placed first three times, including twice in a three-year span from 2014 to 2016

With Russia suspended from most international athletics competitions in recent years because of its invasion of Ukraine, it was not long ago that Finland appeared poised to take over from Sweden as the world’s consensus third-best hockey playing nation. Finland was the only country besides the U.S. and Canada to claim WJC Gold between 2010 and 2019, capturing three U20 world championships in that span. But after medaling in four straight tourneys from 2019-22, the Finns have not appeared on the podium at the past two WJCs.

Meanwhile, Sweden has maintained its spot among the World’s “Big Four” by placing in the event’s top four in four of the last five and five of the last seven years. The Swedes finished second on home ice in 2024, falling to the U.S., 6-2, in the gold-medal game. They have won eight medals since 2010 to trail only the United States and Canada, who have won 10 medals apiece, but Sweden took home the gold just once, in 2012.

This year, the Swedes arrived in Ottawa as the favorites in Group A, but they will have to overcome a Czechia team that has returned to international prominence by placing fourth, second and third, respectively, in the last three WJCs. Those deep tournament runs included upset playoff-round victories over the United States in 2023 and Canada in 2024.

Joining Sweden and Czechia in Group B are Slovakia, Switzerland and Kazakhstan, which was promoted to the field after taking home the gold medal at the most recent Division I, Group A tournament.

The deep and experienced U.S. team is favored to repeat this year, but a younger and talented Canadian group will be very hard to beat on home ice, and the grind of getting through Group A could take its toll on teams during the playoff round.

This is where the competing teams stand entering the 2024 WJC, according to the IIHF’s most recent power rankings:

 

1. United States
2. Canada
3. Sweden
4. Finland
5. Czechia
6. Slovakia
7. Lavia
8. Switzerland
9. Germany
10. Kazakhstan

 

Ottawa last hosted the WJC in 2009, setting the all-time tournament record for attendance as more than 450,000 fans poured into the host arenas to support the home side and root against the Americans on a nightly basis. That year, the average attendance was 14,622, and there is no doubt the host fans will fill the seats and arrive in an ornery mood after a disappointing performance by Team Canada in 2024.

The United States returns 10 players from its 2024 championship group. Six American players were first-round NHL draft picks, eight were chosen in the second round and eight were selected in the later rounds. Of the 25 players on the roster, 22 currently play at the NCAA Division I level and three are on teams in the Ontario Hockey League.

American netminder Trey Augustine, who plays for Michigan State, is back for his third WJC after posting a .929 save percentage and a 1.89 goals-against average in Sweden last year. The Detroit Red Wings prospect is considered the tournament’s top goalie and is supported by the WJC’s most experienced and deepest defensive corps. His WJC experience will be essential playing in what surely will be the most hostile environment most of the American players ever have experienced.

Canada’s fifth-place finish after falling to Czechia in the 2024 quarterfinals caused the hosts to be placed in the same group as the Americans. That disappointing showing came on the heels of back-to-back gold medals, so of course Canada’s performance was considered unacceptable north of the border.

Five players from last year’s team return, but most of the Canadian pre-tournament buzz has been focused on forward Gavin McKenna, who just turned 17 on Dec. 20. The youngest player on Canada’s roster, McKenna leads the Western Hockey League with 60 points in 30 games. He is joined by 10 first-round NHL draft pick and two players – defenseman Matthew Schaefer and forward Porter Martone – who are “A”-rated prospects, according to NHL Central Scouting.

While the tournament groupings mean the road through the preliminary round will be a tough one for both North American teams, the good news is that both nations are a lock to finish among the group’s top four and advance to the semifinals. And even better, we are guaranteed to have a U.S. vs. Canada matchup at this year’s WJC.

That opening-round matchup will take place at 7:30 p.m. EST on New Year’s Eve, Dec. 31, at Canadian Tire Centre. For years, a Canada-USA New Year’s Eve tilt was a staple of the WJC, and as the tournament received more television coverage and gained traction as one of the most-anticipated events on the international hockey calendar, that matchup became must-see TV for any North American hockey fan.

Some of the most memorable USA-Canada battles of all time have taken place on New Year’s Eve at the WJC, but unfortunately because of the way the tournaments have played out in recent years, the nations have not met on that date since the Americans skated to a 3-1 victory at Air Canada Centre in Toronto in 2017.

That will change this year, and we are here for it.

The 10 teams competing in the 2025 WJC have been divided into two, five-team groups for the preliminary round.  The opening round features round-robin play, with teams playing every other team their group once to determine seeding for the playoff round. The top four finishers in each group advance to the playoffs, with the fifth-place teams in each group heading to the relegation round.

In the playoff round, teams play a crossover format in the quarterfinals, with the top seed in one group facing the fourth-place team from the other group while the second- and third-place teams face off. No matter how the teams finish, Canada will play in the prime-time quarterfinal game at Canadian Tire Centre. Teams are re-seeded for the semifinals, with the top remaining side facing the lowest-seeded team that advances.

The two fifth-place teams play one relegation game, with the winner earning a berth into the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship while the loser is relegated to the 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey U20 World Championship for Division I, Group A.

 

2024 World Junior Championship Viewing Guide

Dec. 26

• Sweden vs. Slovakia, noon, NHLN, TSN
• Germany vs. United States, 2:30, NHLN, TSN
• Switzerland vs. Czechia, 5, NHLN, TSN
• Canada vs. Finland, 7:30; NHLN, TSN

 

Dec. 27

• Slovakia vs. Switzerland, 1, NHLN, TSN
• Finland vs. Germany, 3:30; NHLN, TSN4
• Kazakhstan vs. Sweden, 5; TSN, NHLN will air at 11
• Canada vs. Latvia, 7:30, NHLN, TSN

 

Dec. 29

• Sweden vs. Switzerland, noon, NHLN, TSN
• Finland vs. United States, 2:30, NHLN, TSN4
• Slovakia vs. Czechia, 5 ET, NHLN, TSN
• Germany vs. Canada, 7:30, NHLN, TSN

 

Dec. 30

• Kazakhstan vs. Slovakia, 1 ET, NHLN, TSN
• Latvia vs. Germany, 3:30, NHLN, TSN

  

Dec. 31

• Switzerland vs. Kazakhstan, noon, NHLN, TSN
• Latvia vs. Finland, 2:30, TSN4. NHLN will air at 3:30 on Jan. 1
• Czechia vs. Sweden, 5, NHLN, TSN
• United States vs. Canada, 8, NHLN, TSN

 

Jan. 2

• Quarterfinal 1, noon, NHLN, TSN
• Quarterfinal 2, 2:30, NHLN, TSN3, TSN4, TSN5
• Quarterfinal 3, 5, NHLN, TSN
• Quarterfinal 4, 7:30, NHLN, TSN

 

Jan. 4

• Semifinal 1 3:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN
• Semifinal 2 7:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN

 

Jan. 5

• Third-place game, 3:30, NHLN, TSN
• Championship game, 7:30, NHLN, TSN