Predictions for the World Junior Championship
The 2023 World Junior Championship begins Monday in Halifax and Moncton, so it's time to make some prognostications. theScore hockey editors Kyle Cushman, Mike Dickson, Kayla Douglas, Josh Gold-Smith, Sean O'Leary, and Josh Wegman each made their predictions for the event.
Here are our picks for the medal winners and stars of the tournament, including MVP and the top player at each of the three positional groups:
Gold
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Canada |
| Dickson | Canada |
| Douglas | Canada |
| Gold-Smith | Canada |
| O'Leary | Canada |
| Wegman | Canada |
It's unanimous, as all six editors believe Canada will repeat as champion and claim gold for the fourth time in six years, becoming the first nation to win back-to-back world junior titles since Canada captured five straight from 2005-09.
The hosts prevailed in the decisive contest during the rescheduled event in August, thanks to some overtime heroics from Mason McTavish and Kent Johnson. Only time will tell whether it'll be that much of a nail-biter this time, but anything less than gold will be disappointing for Canada based on our expectations.
Silver
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Sweden |
| Dickson | United States |
| Douglas | Sweden |
| Gold-Smith | United States |
| O'Leary | United States |
| Wegman | United States |
Our picks for which team will lose the gold-medal game are a bit less cut and dry, but a majority thinks the U.S. will be the one settling for silver. The 2021 champions boast a deep squad led by promising forwards Logan Cooley, Cutter Gauthier, and Jimmy Snuggerud, as well as Luke Hughes and Lane Hutson on defense and Kaidan Mbereko in goal.
Don't count out Sweden, though. The Tre Kronor should get significant contributions from projected top-five draft pick Leo Carlsson, along with recent first-rounders Filip Bystedt and Fabian Lysell. Sweden doesn't appear as strong on defense, but Vegas Golden Knights goaltending prospect Carl Lindbom could make up for that with stellar play in the crease.
Bronze
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Czechia |
| Dickson | Finland |
| Douglas | United States |
| Gold-Smith | Sweden |
| O'Leary | Czechia |
| Wegman | Finland |
Our choice for bronze was even less unanimous, but Czechia and Finland are our favorites to win the third-place game. Meanwhile, all but one editor believes it'll be silver or nothing for the Swedes and likewise for the United States.
Finland would've defeated Canada in overtime of August's gold-medal game if McTavish hadn't batted the puck out of midair in the crease, and the Finns are primed to compete for another medal less than five months later. Czechia finished fourth in the summer tourney, with defensive stalwarts and Columbus Blue Jackets prospects David Jiricek and Stanislav Svozil returning to take another crack at the podium.
Tournament MVP
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Connor Bedard (Canada) |
| Dickson | Bedard |
| Douglas | Bedard |
| Gold-Smith | Bedard |
| O'Leary | Bedard |
| Wegman | Bedard |
Our pick for most valuable player was a sweep in favor of projected No. 1 overall pick Connor Bedard. The 17-year-old Canadian played well in the summer edition of the tourney, producing four goals and four assists in seven games. Bedard should take a big leap forward in his second full WJHC, and he'll be the clear choice for MVP if he can further justify his status as the top NHL draft prospect.
Best forward
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Bedard |
| Dickson | Bedard |
| Douglas | Bedard |
| Gold-Smith | Bedard |
| O'Leary | Bedard |
| Wegman | Bedard |
Our entire crew also believes Bedard will be the top forward at the tourney. It's hard to argue with either prediction, considering the prolific playmaker's potential and the skill he's already demonstrated at numerous levels. Plenty of talented forwards are playing in this tourney, but none are likely to dominate it like Bedard.
Best defenseman
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Jiricek |
| Dickson | Hughes |
| Douglas | Olen Zellweger (Canada) |
| Gold-Smith | Jiricek |
| O'Leary | Hughes |
| Wegman | Hutson |
We have some intrigue here as two editors each believe Hughes and Jiricek will be named top blue-liner. Hughes is captaining the American squad after posting a goal and five assists over five games at the August tournament. The New Jersey Devils' 2021 fourth overall pick is having a very good season at Michigan and also represented the U.S. at the World Championship in May.
Jiricek has already played in two world junior tournaments and helped Czechia claim bronze at the World Championship this past spring for the country's first medal at that event in 10 years. The Blue Jackets' 2022 sixth overall pick is making a convincing case that he's NHL-ready, with 20 points in 19 AHL games this season. Now all he needs is his world junior gear to arrive, and he'll be all set.
Best goaltender
| Editor | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Cushman | Lindbom |
| Dickson | Mbereko |
| Douglas | Tomas Suchanek (Czechia) |
| Gold-Smith | Lindbom |
| O'Leary | Mbereko |
| Wegman | Niklas Kokko (Finland) |
It's deja vu in our best goalie picks, with another 2-2 tie and the same four editors unknowingly pairing up again for the leading selections. Lindbom has been terrific while playing against professionals for Djurgardens (second-tier ones, but still), going 15-6-0 with a .936 save percentage in 21 games. It's the 19-year-old's time to shine for Sweden, with Jesper Wallstedt now out of the picture.
However, Mbereko could outplay his Swedish counterpart and all other puck-stoppers in this tourney. Wallstedt earned top goaltender honors in August, but Mbereko was great in that event, too. The American ranked among the tournament leaders in save percentage (.921) and won three of his four contests. The 19-year-old has a .927 save percentage over 14 games with Colorado College in 2022-23. His experience and past success bode well for his performance in this tournament.