The first official IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship was held back in 1999 in Fussen and Kaufbeuren, Germany. 

Now, 23 years later, the tournament returns to its Bavarian roots with Landshut’s Fanatec Arena stepping in as the host of Group A, two quarter-finals and all of the final four. Kaufbeuren’s Erdgas Schwaben Arena will host Group B and two quarter-final games.

The tournament starts today and finishes with the medal games on 1 May. Due to the suspensions from participation of Russia and Belarus, this year’s event has been reduced from 10 teams to eight. Group A in Landshut features defending champion Canada, the USA, Czechia and host Germany. Group B in Kaufbeuren has Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Latvia.

Group A:

Canada

Last year presented a rare opportunity for Canada to ice its best possible lineup for a U18 World Championship due to the pandemic-related league conditions, and the result was a dominant team that won just Canada’s fourth gold medal all-time. Most years, their lineup is composed of players that miss their junior-league playoffs, and that will be the case this year. As a result, Nolan Baumgartner’s team this team should be competitive, but otherwise hard to predict. Notably, the Regina Pats’ Connor Bedard, who had 14 points in seven games last year as a 15-year-old, will be available. 

USA

Last year was a bit of a disappointment for the Americans, who saw their 16-year medal streak at this event end on home ice with a quarter-final loss. No team has dominated the U18 like the USA, which has won gold 10 times thanks to its National Development Program team that plays together all season.  Logan Cooley, Frank Nazar, Isaac Howard and Seamus Casey are just a few of the top prospects that should lead this year’s team back to the medal chase. 

Czechia

Last season the Czechs were unfortunate not to capitalize on a solid core of defencemen and finished a disappointing seventh. A silver in 2014 is the only U18 medal the Czechs have won since 2006 and they’re not likely to add to that total this year unless Jakub Petr and his staff can get the most out of this group. Jiri Kulich and defenceman Tomas Hamala lead a small group of returnees while 2005-born Eduard Sale has had an impressive season and should draw some interest in his IIHF debut. 

Germany

The Germans have never made the semi-finals at the U18s, with fifth-place finishes in 2001 and 2008 being their best showings, and they’ll be hard-pressed to do so this year even with the home fans behind them. The German talent pool might not be as deep as it was in recent years but Julian Lutz of Red Bull Munich, who missed most of the season with an injury, is a notable exception. Polish-born defenceman Rayan Bettahar might be available too if his Swift Current Broncos miss the WHL playoffs. 

Group B:

Sweden

The Swedes have been one of the best teams at this event in recent years, winning their first-ever gold in 2019 and should be one of the strongest contenders to regain the title this year. As always, they possess a deep crop of prospects, led by a trio of Djurgarden players, Johathan Lekkerimaki, Liam Ohgren and Calle Odelius, although Lekkerimaki currently has mononucleosis and his status for the tournament is unclear. Centre Leo Carlsson, who won’t be eligible until the 2023 NHL Draft, is already an SHL regular with Orebo HK. 

Finland

Similar to the USA, Canada and neighbour Sweden, Finland has been one of the most dominant teams in this event’s history, with four golds and 11 medals overall. The Finns also feature a deep roster of prospects, led by right winger Joakim Kemmel, who is coming off a brilliant rookie Liiga season with JYP Jyvaskyla and should be one of the top players to watch this tournament. Jani Nyman, Aleksanteri Kaskimaki, and defenceman Otto Salin are among the other Finns to watch.

Switzerland

Switzerland won a silver medal way back in 2001, but since then has done no better than a fourth-place finish in 2015. As usual, the Swiss should play a solid team game, be tough to score on, and be a team that nobody wants to meet in the quarter-finals. This team is somewhat thin on top-end talent though, and will depend on huge defenceman Lian Bichsel, captain and returnee, who is coming off a solid rookie SHL season in Leksand. In the event the Drummondville Voltigeurs miss the QMJHL playoffs, winger Julien Rod could become available. 

Latvia

Prior to this year, Latvia’s best-ever U18 finish was eighth in 2019 and, due to this being an eight-team tournament this year, they will at least equal that. Last year, Latvia was strong defensively under coach Olegs Sorokins but struggled to score, and this year might be more of the same. Nils Fenenko of the QMJHL’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar would be a big help on defence, and forwards Sandis Vilmanis and Dans Locmelis from Lulea in Sweden could help on offence. 

As the tournament will return to 10 teams in 2023, no teams will be relegated from this event. Slovakia and Norway have already earned promotions to next year’s U18 World Championship at the recently-played 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship Division III Group A.

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