It is sometimes difficult to remember that the World Junior Championship is, at its fundamentals, a development tournament and not the be-all and end-all source of national pride for two weeks at the end of each year.
As tantalizing as the prospect of a three-peat for Canada is, it’s much better development for the youngsters and, frankly, much more engaging hockey when teams are evenly matched and each game is competitive.
Friday’s marquee matchup between Sweden and Canada provided the gritty competitiveness that many anticipated between the two powerhouses.
Macklin Celebrini and the Canadian squad dismantled Latvia on Wednesday with a 10-0 victory, but unfortunately, they were unable to duplicate that success against a much more skilled opponent. With a final score of 2-0, this loss to Sweden marked the first time Canada has been shut out since the 2021 tournament.
With one final game remaining in the preliminary round, Canada has the opportunity to redeem themselves, while Sweden has the chance to cement first in Group A in front of home fans.
Here are some takeaways from Friday’s matchup:
Sweden proving it’s their tournament to lose
Undefeated thus far through the tournament and emerging victorious against, arguably, their most challenging opponent in Group A, Sweden has demonstrated that this year’s World Juniors, on home ice, is theirs to lose.
Despite their top scorer Otto Stenberg sitting tied for eighth in the tournament points race, Sweden has remained undefeated by playing a complete game against each of their opponents and getting contributions from up and down the lineup.
Against a Canadian team that has proven it can rack up the points, Sweden completely stifled Canada’s offence, preventing their opponent from getting significant traction in the offensive zone.
Though scoreless through the first period, the ice tilted in favour of the yellow and blue during the second frame, as Sweden was able to clog up the neutral zone and create sustained pressure against Canada.
During the few opportunities Canada had to even the score off the rush, Swedish goaltender Hugo Havelid came up with clutch saves when called upon. Through two games between the pipes for Sweden, Havelid hasn’t allowed a single goal.
Having failed to capture World Junior gold since 2012, this roster led by Stenberg, Theo Lindstein and Havelid seems poised to make a serious run at it in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Canada unable to capitalize on chances
Accustomed to scoring goals at will, it was tough to watch some of Canada’s biggest names this tournament squander chance after chance to get on the board.
With Sweden playing a disciplined game and giving up very little, it would have been important for Canada to capitalize on whatever chances they could get. Despite this, the power play that is operating at 37.5 per cent and second in the tournament in terms of efficiency was completely stymied.
At even strength, when Canada was able to create high-danger scoring chances, they could never convert. Carson Rehkopf had the opportunity early to open the scoring, followed by opportunities for captain Fraser Minten and Matthew Savoie to finally solve the Swedish netminder, but each attempt was turned away.
As the clock wound down and Canada was making their final Hail Mary, they squandered the opportunity to pot one with the empty net after taking a too many men penalty.
Though much of these failed chances can be attributed to the brilliance of Havelid, the rare, uncharacteristic offensive struggles nailed the final hammer in the coffin on Canada’s first loss of the tournament.
Mathis Rousseau emerging as Canada’s MVP
After making the early contender for save of the tournament on Day 1, Canadian netminder Mathis Rousseau is creating his own competition for that title.
The undrafted 19-year-old has commanded control between the pipes and was up to the task against Sweden, despite the 2-0 loss.
Making 22 saves on 24 shots, his best of the contest came during the four-minute penalty kill Canada faced during the first period. Already down a man, Conor Geekie chose to head to the bench for a new stick, effectively creating a two-man advantage for Sweden and opened up a slick backdoor pass right to Liam Ohgren. With what seemed to be an empty net for Ohgren, Rousseau committed highway robbery, stretching out to make the toe save and keep the game scoreless.
He made another highlight-reel save in the second period when he lifted the pad just enough to turn aside a shot from Canucks prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki. He sopped one more through traffic on Lekkerimaki before Noah Ostlund buried the rebound to put Sweden up by two.
Ranked third in goaltenders across the tournament, Rousseau’s statistics have reflected his strong play on the ice. Posting a .944 save percentage and a 1.33 goals-against average, he’s consistently performed as Canada’s best player.
As they try to rebound from Friday’s loss and enter into the elimination stage strong, expect Canada to keep relying on Rousseau.
UP NEXT: Both teams get a rest day and resume their action on New Year’s Eve as Sweden faces their regional rival in Finland, who earned their first win of the tournament on Friday. Meanwhile, Canada will look to bounce back against Germany, who will be playing the second half of a back-to-back.
