USA vs. Sweden for all the marbles was something I felt could happen in the 2024 World Junior Championship. Nothing is ever certain in this tournament. The two front runners appear to be Vancouver Canucks prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki or Flyers prospect, Cutter Gauthier.
Gauthier has been all-world. I think fans who are looking for just goals out of him have to remember that he’s a center and as such, is going to distribute the puck to his talented line mates. He may only have two goals, one is the game-winner to send his team to the gold medal game. He has 12 points and that’s the tournament lead. Gauthier has been a beast in the face-off circle. That’s what his coach, David Carle wants him to do and that is make his line mates better. He’s playing that role.
With Lekkerimaki, his tournament started slower and has picked up steam. Scoring goals is his thing, but I’ve noticed that he’s much stronger and playing a bit better away from the puck. But his team needs him to score, and he has six goals and nine points and is second in the tournament in points.
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I understand that most of the time, the winning team will have the MVP, but I don’t think that’s a lock this year. Gauthier has been so much better than the competition, if Team USA were to lose in overtime, and let’s say Lekkerimakki wasn’t the scorer, then Gauthier would win the award. He’s the favorite here but he’s not so far ahead that he’s guaranteed to win the award and that will make this gold medal game even more fun.
Game Prediction
Both teams have excellent goaltending. Hugo Havelid has been better at times than USA goalie, Trey Augustine. But I’m going to say they cancel each other out. If Sweden is going to win it will be on the strength of their power play. Axel Sandin-Pellikka is heating up and got the game-winner to get them in the finals. Theo Lindstein has been racking up points to. Their blue line is better than USA’s.
This Game is a Pick’Em
I will say that Team USA wins 4-3 in overtime on the strength of a Jimmy Snuggerud goal. If they can play a greasy, physical game, this outcome is possible, but the Swedes have the home-ice advantage and a huge library of Abba songs to play during the game. I expect this game to be an all-timer. There are at least five draft-eligible players that I’ll highlight when the tournament comes to an end.
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