OTTAWA – We say it about a lot of things, but it really doesn’t get any better than the World Juniors. Right in the thick of the holidays and in the middle of a long regular season, we get two weeks of some of the most intense, high-level hockey you’ll see anywhere outside of the NHL.

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• Canada WJC Lineup Projection | USA WJC Lineup Projection
• Follow FloHockey's Coverage Of The 2025 World Junior Championship

FloHockey is on the scene this year bringing you extensive coverage of the holiday tournament as the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship kicks off Thursday in Ottawa. Team USA will play at 2:30 p.m. ET against Germany, while hosts Canada will play Finland in an exciting Boxing Day matchup at 7:30 p.m. ET.

The great thing about the WJC is that you really never know what’s going to happen. There are plenty of surprises along the way, incredible individual performances and maybe we’ll even get another miraculous moment in this tournament.

In Canada’s capital, 10 of the world’s best under-20 national teams will go head-to-head with one goal in mind – win the gold medal. Well, that’s never a simple task, even for the best teams. 

And as hard as this exercise is, we’re going to try to predict how this tournament finishes.

Here we go, my picks for who will win the medals, individual awards and my pre-tournament All-Star Team and MVP picks. Here goes nothin…

2025 World Junior Championship Medal Predictions

• Gold: USA
• Silver: Canada
• Bronze: Slovakia

Why Team USA Will Win The Gold Medal

USA has never won back-to-back gold medals at the World Juniors, but one key difference between this team and others that attempted to win twice in a row, this U.S. squad has 10 returning players. They also have Trey Augustine (DET) in net, returning for his third trip to the World Juniors and he comes into the tournament with a .930 save percentage at Michigan State.

Meanwhile, USA has a top line that is a regular line in college this season as Ryan Leonard (WSH) and Gabe Perreault (NYR) will flank top 2025 NHL Draft prospect James Hagens.

On paper, even with the returnees, I don’t think this U.S. squad is as good as last year’s. There’s not as much depth, but the top of their lineup is as good or better. That includes Minnesota Wild prospect Zeev Buium, who will be USA’s No. 1 defenseman. He’s a proven winner, who has a U18 gold, World Junior gold and NCAA championship to his name already.

On top of that, USA is a well-coached group with David Carle returning along with his entire staff from the year before. Carle is one of the top coaching prospects in hockey today and has two NCAA national titles and just turned 35.

The biggest reason I think USA has a chance to win is that I’d say that Augustine is the tournament’s best goalie by a long shot. Buium has a chance to be one of, if not the best defenseman in the tournament and Ryan Leonard was born for the big moments and very well could be the top forward when all is said and done. If the depth contributes and USA defends adequately, which is not a guarantee this year, they’ve got the goods to do something unprecedented. And they really seem ready for the challenge.

Why Team Canada Will Win The Silver Medal

Canada might have the deepest team on paper. When you’ve got a top-15 pick who played NHL games this year in Jett Luchanko (PHI) as your likely fourth-line center, that’s a deep team. They’ve got skill at every position and should have a top-nine forward group that rivals any in the tournament.

This team has a lot of older players, but mixed in some very, very young ones as Gavin McKenna (2026), Porter Martone (2025) and Matthew Schaefer (2025) all appear poised to play big roles on this team. They’re all exceptional players and I think they match up well with anybody. The question is how much run they get in their roles and if they’ll get enough trust right out of the gate to get things fired up. 

The reason it’s harder to pick them for gold this year is that there are definitely some questions remaining about their goaltending and the lack of a true dynamic element on their back end is something that might make it a bit harder on them to really open games up.

The goaltending should be adequate at worst as I think Carter George (LAK) has a tremendous mental game, but it's been unclear who really is Canada's No. 1 at this stage. I'm not sure they have a guy that can steal a game for them.

Canada is on home ice and it’s rare they don’t win on home ice, but USA has won three of its gold medals in Canada, twice beating Canada in the final. I think USA’s WJC experience is a separating factor here, even though Canada’s going to have a tremendous atmosphere.

Why Team Slovakia Will Win The Bronze Medal

OK, so if you watched Called Up: The Prospects Podcast, you’ll know I picked the Czechs to win a medal in their third straight year, but I’m calling an audible on the day of the tournament. The print one is the one that counts, right? It's a lot more easily searchable, that's for sure.

Anyways, I think Slovakia has a lot of big, big questions about their whole team. Their goaltending would have to be exceptional, their defense will have to stand tall and they need their stars to really be stars. That’s where I think they can potentially make up some ground.

I think Dalibor Dvorsky is going to break out in this tournament and this is his FOURTH World Junior. Yes, you read that right. He is Slovakia’s captain, their most experienced player and has shown some great signs of progression in his game in the AHL with the Springfield Falcons this year. 

On top of that, I think Slovakia has some sneaky good players that are going to make it so it’s not just the Dvorsky show. Fellow Blues prospect Juraj Pecarcik is one of them. He’s got size and he can score. Buffalo Sabres draft pick Maxim Strbak is also back for his third World Junior and shines in bigger minutes. He’s looked great at Michigan State this year.

Lastly, Slovakia has only had success when their goalie has been lights out. Samuel Urban and Alan Landak have had some success in the USHL and draft-eligible Michael Pradel is intriguing if unproven. This is why I’m going way out on a limb here. Slovakia on paper doesn’t stack up to Finland or Sweden and especially not the big two, but we’ll play the hunch.

2025 World Junior Championship Directorate Award Predictions

Each year, the members of the tournament directorate, which features staff from IIHF and member organizations, select the top players at each position. This is who I think will win.

Best Forward Prediction: Dalibor Dvorsky, Slovakia

If Slovakia advances out of the quarterfinals for the first time in a long time, it’s going to be because Dalibor Dvorsky (STL) is dragging them there. He is the team’s best player, has a boatload of experience and since these awards are chosen by the tournament directorate, this could also be a nice lifetime achievement award in his fourth World Juniors.

On top of that, Dvorsky and Slovakia are in a pool that does not include Canada, USA or Finland. That’s good news for point totals, which obviously play a big role in these kinds of awards.

Best Defenseman Prediction: Zeev Buium, USA

Zeev Buium (MIN) really has no choice but to be good for Team USA. They lack depth on the back end, which means big, big minutes for Buium. He’ll also be on Team USA’s first power play unit, which is absolutely loaded. Points should be there. On top of that, he seems to play his best in the biggest games.

If USA repeats, Buium is going to be in the discussion for being their MVP.

Best Goaltender Prediction: Trey Augustine, USA

In his third trip to the tournament, Trey Augustine (DET) is actually USA’s true No. 1 for the first time in his WJC career. He split starts with others in his previous two trips, but this is his team now. He’s playing some incredible hockey for Michigan State and should he win another medal at this tournament, he will be the first goalie in nearly 30 years to win three at this event. It will be hard to overlook him if that were to be the case.

2025 World Juniors Media All-Star Team Predictions

• Forwards: Gavin McKenna (Canada), Calum Ritchie (Canada), Ryan Leonard (USA)
• Defensemen: Zeev Buium (USA), Axel-Sandin Pellikka (Sweden)
• Goalie: Trey Augustine (USA)

All-Star voting is done by the media, myself included. Those ballots have to be submitted to the IIHF after the first intermission of the gold-medal game. I usually take my decision right up to that deadline.

But you will often see many differences between IIHF Directorate Awards and the media all-star team. That’s the case in my prediction as well.

I do think Gavin McKenna (2026) is going to have a sizable impact for Canada despite his youth. He's going to be a top-six forward more than likely and with that opportunity should come lots and lots of points. Meanwhile, Calum Ritchie, who is the Canada's No. 1 center, which puts him in a position to make a big impact. Meanwhile, Ryan Leonard is USA’s captain and has a penchant for massive goals and I think he’s poised for big points.

Sandin-Pellikka (DET) won the directorate award as top defenseman last year, and I think he’ll have a good shot at it again this year as I think he’ll have a lot of points. An All-Star selection isn’t bad, either. Meanwhile, I already outlined why I think Buium  and Augustine will have a big impact in this tournament.

Who Will Win MVP At The 2025 World Juniors?

Ryan Leonard (WSH) of Team USA is my pick to win MVP. He’ll be playing a ton of minutes, in a lot of big spots and he’s always in the thick of everything. He plays an exciting brand of hockey with a mix of skill and brute force, and he can really fire the puck. Playing alongside regular linemates James Hagens (2025) and Gabe Perreault (NYR) is an added bonus. I think he’s going to put his stamp on this tournament.

Team USA has never gone back-to-back and there's a reason they slapped the C on Ryan Leonard. He is their emotional leader and they'll go as he goes.

Follow FloHockey's Coverage Of Team USA At The WJC

FloHockey is providing comprehensive editorial and video coverage of the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship. With a team of content creators on site and leading WJC analyst Chris Peters providing stories and columns throughout the event, make FloHockey your home to learn more about the 2025 World Juniors. FloHockey will be following Team USA and Team Canada closely, while tracking the rest of the tournament on site. See all the stories here.

In addition to comprehensive editorial coverage, FloHockey is helping you learn more about Team USA with a number of video features with select players. Here's what we have so far, with more to come!

Original Video Features

• Trey Augustine Prepares For Third WJC
• James Hagens Ready For The Spotlight
• David Carle Looks To Become First Coach To Go Back-To-Back
• Carey Terrance Looking To Represent USA, Akwesasne Reservation
• Ryan Leonard Says NHL Can Wait As He Chases Another Gold With Team USA
• Zeev Buium Looking To Prove Doubters Wrong In Quest For Second WJC Gold
• Gabe Perreault's Elite Playmaking Ability To Be On Display At WJC

2025 Full World Junior Championship Schedule

Dec. 26

• Sweden vs. Slovakia, TD Place, 12 p.m. ET
• Germany vs. United States, Canadian Tire Centre, 2:30 p.m. ET
• Switzerland vs. Czechia, TD Place, 5 p.m. ET
• Canada vs. Finland, Canadian Tire Centre, 7:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 27

• Slovakia vs. Switzerland, TD Place, 1 p.m. ET
• Finland vs. Germany, Canadian Tire Centre, 3:30 p.m. ET
• Kazakhstan vs. Sweden, TD Place, 5 p.m. ET
• Canada vs. Latvia, Canadian Tire Centre, 7:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 28

• Czechia vs. Kazakhstan, TD Place, 1 p.m. ET
• United States vs. Latvia, Canadian Tire Centre, 3:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 29

• Sweden vs. Switzerland, TD Place, 12 p.m. ET
• Finland vs. United States, Canadian Tire Centre, 2:30 p.m. ET
• Slovakia vs. Czechia, TD Place, 5 p.m. ET
• Germany vs. Canada, Canadian Tire Centre, 7:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 30

• Kazakhstan vs. Slovakia, TD Place, 1 p.m. ET
• Latvia vs. Germany, Canadian Tire Centre, 3:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 31

• Switzerland vs. Kazakhstan, TD Place, 12 p.m. ET
• Latvia vs. Finland, Canadian Tire Centre, 2:30 p.m. ET
• Czechia vs. Sweden, TD Place, 5 p.m. ET
• United States vs. Canada, Canadian Tire Centre, 7:30 p.m. ET

Jan. 2

• Quarterfinal 1, TD Place, 12 p.m. ET
• Quarterfinal 2, Canadian Tire Centre, 2:30 p.m. ET
• Quarterfinal 3, TD Place, 5 p.m. ET
• Quarterfinal 4, Canadian Tire Centre, 7:30 p.m. ET

Jan. 4 (Canadian Tire Centre)

• Semifinal 1, 3:30 p.m. ET
• Semifinal 2, 7:30 p.m. ET

Jan. 5 (Canadian Tire Centre)

• Third-place game, 3:30 p.m. ET
• Championship game, 7:30 p.m. ET

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