The first day of the 2026 World Junior Championship (WJC) did not disappoint. The teams who were expected to win their tournament-opening games did just that, and the marquee matchup between Canada and Czechia headlined the day. While there may not be a matchup of that magnitude on day two, there are four games that will still be exciting to watch for hockey fans, including a matchup between Canada and Latvia, a year to the day after Latvia pulled off a shootout upset victory over the Canadians.
Slovakia vs Germany (2 p.m.)
Slovakia: Final Roster
Germany: Final Roster
After dropping a tight game to Sweden in their first tournament game, Slovakia should come into the matchup against Germany feeling good, even though they lost to Sweden. They played a strong game against the Swedes, though they gave them too many power play opportunities. Alan Lendak has a strong chance to be the starter again for Slovakia after earning player of the game honors for his team, stopping 29 of the 32 shots he faced.
Against a German team that lacks the top-end talent Sweden has, Slovakia should be able to take the upper hand offensively. One of the biggest x-factors for the Slovaks is staying out of the box. If Luka Radivojevic can play in the game after missing the opening game due to illness, it could be a big boost for the Slovaks as well.
The Germans gave the United States everything they could handle for the first two and a half periods of their matchup last night (Dec. 26), but the Americans eventually pulled away. The hard-working mentality Germany plays with does help them compete with teams in the tournament. Still, in the end, the lack of high-end goal-scoring and overall goaltending (albeit a solid performance by Lennart Neibe against the United States) could be Germany’s downfall.
Against a team like Slovakia, which does have offensive skill with players like Jan Chovan (Los Angeles Kings) and Tomas Chrenko, it will be another tough battle for Germany to keep up.
Favorite: Slovakia
Players to Watch: Simon Seidl (Germany), Lenny Boos (Germany), Jan Chovan (Slovakia), Tobias Pitka (Slovakia)
Latvia vs Canada (4:30 p.m.)
Latvia: Final Roster
Canada: Final Roster
Latvia gets the chance to pull off another major upset this year in their first game of the tournament, but will be doing so with a lot less firepower than they had last year. They will undoubtedly miss the offensive skills of Eriks Matieko (Washington Capitals) and goaltender Linards Feldbergs. Both players were catalysts in the Latvians’ upset of Canada last year.
Having a few unknowns on their roster, including at the goaltending position, could make this game a lot different from last year. Bruno Osmanis, a returner from last year’s team, will be looked upon to help lead the Latvians from the front end of the ice. Defensively, keeping pace with a Canadian team that has plenty of explosiveness offensively will be a tough ask.
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Canada’s revenge tour continues in their second game of the tournament, following a 7-5 victory over Czechia in their first. The offensive output from the Canadians in the win should translate into the matchup against a weaker Latvian team. Latvia is much like Germany, though, in that they are known for being a hard-working team that is a pesky opponent. Canada learned that last year, so the goal should be to get going early and build a lead.
Favorite: Canada
Players to Watch: Olivers Murnieks (Latvia), Alberts Šmits (Latvia), Porter Martone (Canada), Zayne Parekh (Canada)
United States vs Switzerland (6:00 p.m.)
United States: Final Roster
Switzerland: Final Roster
After pulling away from Germany in their tournament-opening game, the United States will look to play a bit cleaner, all-around game for a full 60 minutes, and get its power play going (0-for-3 vs. Germany) against Switzerland. Against the Germans, the Americans rolled all of their lines throughout the game and got solid play from their lineup, but the area where they need a bit more is from their goaltending.
Without Trey Augustine (Detroit Red Wings) in the crease, the position was a question mark on who would step up. Caleb Heil (Tampa Bay Lightning) got the first crack at it and did not have the greatest of starts to the game. There is a good chance that Brady Knowling, who is draft-eligible for the 2026 Draft, or Nick Kempf (Washington Capitals), will get the start against the Swiss. Carrying the momentum from the second half of their win over Germany should help them to a victory over Switzerland.
Switzerland will likely be fighting to stave off relegation this year, as they do not have a ton of top-end talent offensively, and will rely on the duo of Christian Kirsch (San Jose Sharks) and Eliijah Neuenschwander (Anaheim Ducks) in between the pipes throughout the tournament. The Swiss’s goaltending and defense will be their strong suit this year, and they will need to be at their best against the high-powered American lineup.
Favorite: United States
Players to Watch: Chase Reid (United States), Cole Hutson (United States), Lars Steiner (Switzerland), Leon Muggli (Switzerland)
Denmark vs Czechia (8:30 p.m.)
Denmark: Final Roster
Czechia: Final Roster
Making their first appearance in the World Junior Championship since 2019, Denmark had a rough start to the tournament, dropping their opening game to Finland, 6-2. Goaltender Anton Wilde was busy, facing 43 shots, and tried to keep his team in the game. They will not have a great matchup against Czechia today. They will need another solid showing from their goaltending to keep them alive against the high-powered Czech forwards.
Czechia is looking to bounce back from their 7-5 loss to Canada last night, where they played well enough to beat any team other than Canada. They will have an easier time keeping Denmark out of the high-danger areas of the offensive zone and should be able to get on track with a win in the last game of day two of the tournament.
Favorite: Czechia
Players to Watch: Anton Linde (Denmark), Adam Novotny (Czechia), Adam Jiricek (Czechia)
Can Teams Solidify Themselves Early On?
Two teams are playing their first games of the tournament today (Switzerland and Latvia), while the rest of the teams have already played one game. Can the 1-0 teams solidify their positions at the top of their respective groups, and can the 0-1 teams get back to .500 and set up for an exciting final few days of group play? Either way you look at it, today’s games will be exciting to watch.
