OTTAWA, Ontario – It’s been a date circled on the calendar of hockey fans across North America since the schedule for the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship was released months back. And tonight it’s finally here as the U.S. National Junior Team will face Canada at a sold-out Canadian Tire Centre. Opening faceoff is set for 8 p.m. ET and the game can be seen live on NHL Network. Not only is national pride on the line, but also the top spot in Group A of the World Juniors.
GAME STATS
GAME NOTES
The game is the first New Year’s Eve matchup since the 2017 World Juniors when Team USA – behind a goal and two assists from Jordan Greenway and 25 saves from Joseph Woll – earned a 3-1 victory. All-time the teams have met 11 times on New Year’s Eve with Canada holding a 7-3-1 advantage.
Team USA looks to rebound from its first defeat in the tournament — a 4-3 overtime decision to Finland on Sunday (Dec. 29). The loss ended a 10-game winning streak in the World Juniors for the U.S., dating back to the bronze medal game of the 2023 tournament.
Canada’s journey in the 2025 World Juniors has included shutout wins over Finland and Germany in between a 3-2 loss to Latvia.
Both the U.S. and Canada have seven points in the standings heading into play today and share the top spot in Group A. The winner of tonight’s game will win the group, and the loser will finish either second or third in the group, depending upon the outcome of the Finland (5 points)-Latvia (4 points) contest, which will be played this afternoon.
Team USA has already earned a spot in Thursday’s (Jan. 2) tournament quarterfinals.
Heading into action today, James Hagens (2 goals, 4 assists) and Cole Hutson (1 goals, 5 assists) both have six points, one back of the tournament lead, while Brodie Ziemer’s three goals are one off the top spot.
World Juniors Insider 
2025 WJC Home 
Team USA Roster
Source: usahockey.com