The Canadian hosts look to rebound after a finishing fifth in 2024. But an experienced U.S. team is well-positioned to repeat for the first time in World Juniors history.

The tournament features the best under-20 players from across the world, and is seen as a showcase for potential first-round draft picks in the NHL

The 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship will be held in Ottawa, from Dec. 26-Jan. 5. Today, we preview the Group B preliminary-round bracket. Sweden is looking for its first gold medal at the World Juniors since 2012, and powering that bid will be nine players who won a silver medal at the 2024 WJC.

The tournament has become a holiday tradition for many hockey fans around the world, beginning on Boxing Day (Dec. 26) each year and ending during the first week of the new year. The WJC has grown remarkably since the inaugural (official) tournament was held in 1977 and has massive international support.

The Chicago Blackhawks have a lot of good young players in the organization. It all starts and ends with Connor Bedard, the number-one pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. He is the guy that the franchise will look to build a winner around.

The 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship will be played in Ottawa from Dec. 26-Jan. 5. Group A for the preliminary round is Canada, Finland, Germany, Latvia and the United States, which won the tournament in 2024. Group B is Czechia, Kazakhstan, Slovakia, Sweden and Switzerland.

Team Germany released its final roster for the 2025 World Juniors in Ottawa on the DEB official site after a four-game preparation stage. After an intensive two weeks in Charlottetown, Moncton and Ottawa,

The 2025 world juniors are set to be another holiday classic. Some of The Hockey News' digital contributors bravely guess the medallists and top players ahead of the tournament.