The final preliminary round game for Group A in the 2026 World Juniors Championship was between USA and Sweden on New Year’s Eve, Wednesday night, Dec. 31. Both teams looked to secure the top spot in their group, and while it was expected to be a close-fought game, it was more one-sided and not in USA’s favor.
Sweden took an early lead and kept adding to it as the game went on. USA tried to fight back and came close but, Sweden pulled away, and USA didn’t have enough to finish the comeback. In this article, we’ll look at some takeaways from the game, starting with USA’s slow start.
USA Starts Slow
In their prior games, USA had a lot of energy and jump to start. They looked like they’d have the same efforts against Sweden until Sweden got the early goal. USA was slower than normal and made a lot of mistakes that weren’t typical. They couldn’t seem to handle their passes and fumbled the puck a lot.
When they finally broke through and got their first goal, they came to life a bit, but fell back when Sweden scored again. They didn’t have the same energy they had in prior games, and it came back to bite them. They fell behind, and by the time they found their game and started getting things to go their way, they didn’t have enough time.
They came really close to turning the tide when they got within two goals while on the power play and had a big chance to change the game. Instead, they took a penalty and Sweden scored, and that was it. USA tried to come back but, they couldn’t swing the momentum and ran out of time. In their next game, they have to come out ready, or they will struggle.
USA Needs More From Their Stars
Names like Cole Eiserman, Brodie Ziemer, James Hagens, and Teddy Stiga all come to mind. While they did contribute to the points against Sweden, they needed more from them at the very start. They have to find ways to produce more and come up big when they need them the most, as leaders are expected to do.
Assists are great, but they needed more goals, however there also has to be a balance. While they need more from their top players, they can’t have their top players trying to do everything without help. There’s a balance of making the passes when they need to and trying to do it all by themselves.
Several times throughout the game, USA players tried to carry the puck in by themselves and lost it, or the other way around. They tried to make too many passes and turned the puck over, and Sweden took it the opposite way. Their top players have to find ways to do more while not turning the puck over. They’ve done it before, and they’ll need to do so again. They need to trust their teammates to help carry the load, but if there’s an opposing player in the way, they have to be able to do it themselves.
USA’s Power Play Bright Spot
One of the bright spots for USA’s game was that they kept their power play going. Two of their three goals were on the power play, but they did allow another shorthanded goal against. They have to tighten up their man advantage so they can score goals but not be scored on in return. The power play can be key to winning games, as everyone has seen throughout this tournament.
Related: Guide to the 2026 World Junior Championship
The preliminary round is over, which means it’s win or go home. USA needs their power play to step up and stay consistent if they want to get past their next opponent. On the flip side, they have to find a way to stay out of the penalty box and stay disciplined as well. They can’t keep getting caught in their mistakes.
They will face Finland in their first quarterfinal game on Friday, Jan. 2, at Grand Casino Arena. They will have to be ready because Finland is tough like Sweden, so it won’t be an easy matchup. If they can bring the energy they had in their first games, they’ll be ready to come out with a win.
