2026 IIHF World Junior Championship – Gold & Bronze Medal (Jan. 5th, 2026)

The final day of the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship saw Sweden claim the gold medal with a 4-2 victory, capping off a flawless tournament, while earlier in the day, Canada snapped its medal drought by securing bronze – an encouraging result as they look ahead to hosting next year’s event. Below is a full recap of both the gold- and bronze-medal matchups.

 

Canada vs. Finland – Bronze Medal

Final: 6 (CAN) – 3 (FIN)

While it wasn’t the colour of medal they wanted to bring home, Canada managed to end their medal drought and closed out the tournament on a strong note, earning the bronze medal with a 6-3 win over Finland. 

The result marks Canada’s first medal since capturing gold at the 2023 World Juniors in Halifax, ending the longest medal drought in program history. Despite owning a record 20 titles, the Canadians have now been eliminated by Czechia in the playoffs in the past three tournaments. 

Goaltender Carter George (Owen Sound Attack) returned to the crease for the bronze medal game, his first appearance since the 7-4 New Year’s Eve win over the Finns.

Just 1:10 into the game, Sam O’Reilly took a backhand feed from Michael Hage on a 2-on-1 to open the scoring for Canada with a backhand deke. 

But, as it seems to be a trend with the Canadians, the lead didn’t last long. Arttu Valila, the overtime hero from Finland’s 4-3 quarterfinal win over the U.S., walked in and beat George blocker-side on Finland’s first shot of the game.  

Braeden Cootes would restore Canada’s lead just over a minute later from the slot, but once again Finland pulled even, tying the game with a one-timer on the power play. Jasper Kuhta (Ottawa 67’s) registered an assist. 

On Canada’s first man advantage, Zayne Parekh (Saginaw Spirit) weaved into the left circle and ripped a shot over Petteri Rimpinen’s glove, giving Canada a 3-2 lead heading into the first intermission.

Early in the second, Porter Martone (Brampton Steelheads) finished a crisp passing sequence with Parekh and Tij Iginla for his sixth goal of the tournament. Moments later, O’Reilly buried Gavin McKenna’s slap‑pass at the crease for his second of the game, extending Canada’s lead to 5-2 on the power play.

ANOTHER ONE FOR O'REILLY 🗣️

Canada converts on the power-play to make it a 5-2 game.#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/ULv2ZtyLHk

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 5, 2026

Heikki Ruohonen reduced the gap to two goals, but that was as close as the Finns would come, even while outshooting Canada 17-6 in the final frame.

The only goal of the third came from McKenna, who combined with Hage to make it 6-3 and secure the win.

Forward Brady Martin (Soo Greyhounds), who posted eight points (4‑4–8) in the tournament, did not dress for the bronze medal game after leaving Sunday’s semifinal following a reverse hit from Czechia’s Matyas Man. Liam Greentree (Windsor Spitfires) returned to the lineup in his place.

With a goal and an assist, Parekh set a new single‑tournament scoring record for a Canadian defenceman with 13 points (6‑7–13), surpassing Alex Pietrangelo’s 12‑point mark from 2010. Hage also moved into the tournament scoring lead (2‑13–15) ahead of the Sweden–Czechia final.

“We came into today a little down, obviously, but we worked hard to get our heads in the right place and come to work like any other day,” Parekh said following the game. “After the first 20 minutes, we said to each other – why not? Let’s do this for the country, and we got the job done. It’s bittersweet for me when you talk about the record, because you want to win [a gold medal] and today was tough, but I’m proud of the group, and those are friends for life.”

Canada collects bronze and sings the national anthem🍁#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/y6UkIoMaHv

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 6, 2026

 

OHL Player Game Stats:

* denotes player who has not played an OHL game in the 2025-26 season

Canada

• Sam O’Reilly (London Knights) – 2G
• Zayne Parekh (Saginaw Spirit)* – 1G, 1A (Named Media All-Star team)
• Porter Martone (Brampton Steelheads)* – 1G
• Liam Greentree (Windsor Spitfires) – 1A
• Carter George (Owen Sound Attack) – 32 SVS

Finland

• Jasper Kuhta (Ottawa 67’s) – 1A

 

Sweden vs. Czechia – Gold Medal

Final: 4 (SWE) – 2 (CZE)

Sweden struck early and then survived a furious late push from Czechia to capture the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship gold medal with a dramatic 4-2 victory.

The win marks Sweden’s third World Juniors title (1981, 2012) and its fifth medal in the past nine years. Despite the loss, Czechia extended its impressive run with a fourth consecutive medal (silver, bronze, bronze, silver). 

The first major moment actually went to Czechia, which earned a power play late in the opening period. But the advantage flipped quickly. As Casper Juustovaara crossed the Czech blue line, his stick was knocked loose. With a delayed penalty coming, Sweden kept control. Goaltender Love Harenstam headed to the bench, Juustovaara retrieved his stick and drove to the crease, and captain Jack Berlund fed him from behind the net for a goal that counted as both short-handed and on the delayed call.

Sweden doubled the lead in the second period when Viktor Eklund pounced on a loose puck during another power play. Early in the third, Sascha Boumedienne made it 3-0, seemingly putting the Swedes on a smooth path to the championship.

However, Czechia refused to fold. With more than three minutes remaining, they pulled goaltender Michal Orsulak and finally spoiled Harenstam’s shutout when Adam Jiricek (Brantford Bulldogs) blasted home a one-timer. Momentum surged, and with just 23.3 seconds left, Matej Kubiesa buried a cross-ice feed to make it a one-goal game and set up a frantic finish.

But Ivar Stenberg sealed the outcome with an empty-net goal eight seconds from the buzzer, securing Sweden’s perfect 7-0 tournament record and the gold medal.

SWEDEN ARE YOUR 2026 #WorldJuniors CHAMPIONS 🥇 pic.twitter.com/tViKnvIKcM

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 6, 2026

 

OHL Player Game Stats:

Czechia

• Adam Jiricek (Brantford Bulldogs) – 1G (Named to Tournament All-Star Team)

• Jakub Fibigr (Brampton Steelheads) – 1A

 

Final Standings:

Gold. Sweden

Silver. Czechia

Bronze. Canada

4th. Finland

5th. United States

6th. Switzerland

7th. Latvia

8th. Slovakia

9th. Germany

10th. Denmark

 

Looking Ahead: 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship

Location: Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta, from Dec. 26, 2026, to Jan. 5, 2027.

Group A:

• Sweden
• Finland
• United States
• Slovakia
• Germany

Group B:

• Czechia
• Canada
• Switzerland
• Latvia
• Norway

*Note: Host Canada can opt to swap a country to a different group 

Hockey fans interested in attending the tournament can sign up for the 2027 World Juniors Priority Draw for free. The deadline to enter is tomorrow at 11:59 p.m. MT. Please visit HockeyCanada.ca/PriorityDraw for more information.