Sweden beats Finland in shootout and Czechia beats Canada for third straight year

Sweden and Czechia advanced to the gold medal game at the World Juniors with exhilarating victories in the two best played games in the tournament.

Sweden outlasted Finland in a second shootout after the teams skated to a tie after regulation and a 3-on-3 overtime.

The game went to a shootout where the teams tied again after the first round of five, each scoring one goal. In the second round, Anton Frondell scored the winner, giving Sweden a 4-3 win.

“This game was crazy,” said Frondell, who failed to score twice in the shootout before going five-hole on Finnish goalie Petteri Rimpinen on the 16th shot taken in total.

It was a revenge of sorts for Sweden who was eliminated last year by Finland. Sweden played in the Gold Medal game in 2024, losing to Team USA. They have won two Gold Medals (1981, 2012) and could be the favorite heading into tonight’s game against Czechia, who for the third straight year eliminated Canada from Gold Medal competition.

In a back-and-forth high-tempo game, it was a goal that caromed off the skate of Tomas Poletin with 1:14 left that was the eventual game winner against Canada.

Minnesota Wild 4^th-round draft pick Adam Benak had a goal and two assists for Czechia, who will play for their third Gold Medal in tournament history. They beat Russia in 2000 1-0 and then won 2-1 over Finland in 2001.

While Benak is a player to watch for Czechia, a player to watch for Sweden is winger Ivar Stenberg, who many consider to be a potential No. 1-overall draft pick in June’s NHL draft, having passed up Canada’s Gavin McKenna.

If the Gold Medal game is anything like the two semifinal games, it should be a great hockey game. Puck drop is 7:30 and tickets are available. It will be broadcast on NHL Network.