2023 World Juniors daily: Dec. 30

After a busy Thursday that featured four games, there are just two on tap Friday at the 2023 World Juniors.

Day 5 schedule:

Slovakia vs. Latvia — 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT
Germany vs. Austria — 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT

The day ahead: 

After their win over the USA Wednesday, Slovakia returns to action as they seek their second victory of the tournament against a Latvia side that were shutout by Finland yesterday.

In the lone contest in Halifax, Germany and Austria will battle in what is essentially an elimination game as both teams are winless thus far. Germany still has to play Czechia but a win over Austria will guarantee a quarterfinal berth; defeat for Austria will send them to the relegation round against the fifth place finisher in Group B.

Day 4 results:

Finland 3-0 Latvia
Sweden 3-2 Czechia (OT)
USA 5-1 Switzerland
Canada 11-0 Austria

About yesterday: 

Latvia’s quartet of CHL players were shutout by the Finns but Bogdans Hodass (MC) led the team in time on ice with 25:17. Latvia has only scored four goals in three games although half of them have come from CHL players in Niks Fenenko (BAC) and Anri Ravinskis (SAR).

Czechia suffered their first loss of the tournament, albeit in overtime, as they fell 3-2 to Sweden. Matyas Sapovaliv (SAG) had an assist in defeat while Tomas Suchanek (TC) stopped 21 shots. The point guaranteed that Czechia cannot finish lower than second in Group A and coupled with a victory over Germany in their round-robin game, and a Canada win over Sweden, they will top the pool.

Buried by Boucher 😤 #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/DHga8HikpV

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) December 29, 2022

The USA, who were beaten 6-3 by Slovakia yesterday, rebounded with a 5-1 win over Switzerland. Tyler Boucher (OTT) scored his third goal of the tournament while Attilio Biasca (HAL) had the Swiss’ lone goal as they suffered their first defeat at the 2023 World Juniors.

As expected, Canada rolled to victory over Austria in Thursday’s final game with an 11-0 win. It took Canada 14:08 to open the scoring as Brennan Othmann (PBO) fed Dylan Guenther with a gorgeous between the legs pass before the hosts really took off.

Connor Bedard (REG) was sensational again as he scored twice and added four assists. In the process, he tied Jordan Eberle for the most career World Juniors goals by a Canadian with 14 while he moved into sole possession of second place for most points with 27 and trails only Eric Lindros’ 31 for the team record.

1️⃣4️⃣ career #WorldJuniors goals for Connor Bedard❗️

That ties former @WHLPats star Jordan Eberle for the Canadian record! 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/ILbHU9NSzL

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) December 30, 2022

Logan Stankoven had four points (1G, 3A) while Nathan Gaucher and Joshua Roy each contributed a goal and two assists. In all, all but two Canadian skaters (Caeden Bankier and Kevin Korchinski) recorded at least one point while Benjamin Gaudreau stopped 12 shots to record the shutout.

Filthy setup from Othmann 😮 #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/oxgrJV17LR

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) December 30, 2022

Who to watch:

From a CHL perspective, eyes will be on Slovakia, who feature a number of offensive weapons that includes Peter Repcik, in their tilt against Latvia.

Perhaps not as widely known as teammates Filip Mesar (KIT) or Servac Petrovsky (OS), Repcik leads Slovakia in goals (3) and points (4). In fact, his three goals are tied for the third most at the World Juniors.

Since an early season trade from Cape Breton, Repcik has five goals and 10 points in the QMJHL with Charlottetown.

CHL leaders: 

Where to watch:

Both of Friday’s games can be seen live on TSN 1/4 while Germany vs. Austria can also be seen on TSN 5.