Sweden scored twice in the first period and persevered to defeat Latvia 3-2 in Thursday’s first quarter-final. The never-say-die Latvians rallied with two second-period goals from assistant captain Eriks Mateiko, but despite rousing cheers from the TD Place Arena crowd, the underdogs couldn't complete their comeback.

The Swedes had three different goal-scorers, with David Edstrom's second-period tally standing up as the winner.

"It's always tough in these quarter-finals," Edstrom said. "Both teams really wanted to win, and it was nice getting the win."

Anton Wahlberg spoke about the key takeaway for Sweden heading into the semi-finals: "We need to be good for 60 minutes. We can't score three goals and think the game is done when you get to the playoffs. Nobody wants to lose, because it's win or go home."

Sweden, which earned its all-time record 12th silver medal at last year’s World Juniors in Gothenburg, will compete in the final four for the fourth straight time. Their last gold medal came in 2012 in Calgary with a 1-0 overtime win over the Russians.

"It feels good, " said Swedish captain Axel Sandin Pellikka. "Obviously we won the game, so that's what we're going for and we're now looking forward to the semis."

 

Swedish goalie Melker Thelin had a much lighter workload than his counterpart Linards Feldbergs, who was named Latvia's player of the game. Coach Magnus Havelid’s troops outshot Latvia 50-13.

The Latvians already achieved a “Miracle on Ice” moment with their stunning 3-2 shootout win over host Canada in the group stage. To do it again versus Sweden in the playoffs was a big ask. They can take pride in their Ottawa performance regardless.

"Overall, this team probably was the best team that ever [represented Latvia at World Juniors]," Mateiko said. "I feel like we played our hearts out every day. Definitely a tough one today, going out in a close game. But big thanks to all the guys and Feldbergs especially. We wouldn't be here, if not for our goalie."

"I think this was one of the best weeks in my life," said Feldbergs. "This tournament is going to stay in my head and my heart for the rest of my life."

From the outset, the Swedes dominated with their traditional puck possession game. First-period shots favoured the Juniorkronorna 19-2. Latvia did not get a shot on goal until after the 15-minute mark.

Zeb Forsfjall opened the scoring at 8:30, rushing down left wing and beating Feldbergs to the glove side. The Latvians expressed concern as Daniels Serkins was shaken up on a neutral zone collision with Sweden’s David Granberg on the play, but no penalty was assessed.

Less than two minutes later, Sandin Pellikka fed Wahlberg cross-ice for a one-timer to double the lead.

"I came around the top and got the puck and just shot it," Wahlberg said. "Got it a bit earlier than I wanted, but it worked out perfectly."

The top-ranked Swedish power play went to work in the second period. Edstrom cashed in the rebound off Victor Eklund's shot from the slot at 3:57. Just after the expiry of a mid-game two-man advantage, it appeared Edstrom had scored again, but a coach's challenge by Artis Abols confirmed that the play was offside, and the goal was nullified.

Latvia exploited the lmomentum swing. Mateiko, the scoring hero versus Canada, squeezed a shot past Thelin's blocker arm to cut the deficit to 3-1 at 10:13. It was just Latvia's fourth shot on net.

With 1:10 left in the middle frame, Mateiko jammed a rebound past Thelin's left pad for his team-leading fifth goal. The atmosphere in the arena was electric from the Latvian bench to the stands.

"We just started to play our game, really," Mateiko said. "I think we played harder, kind of woke up and knew that after that first goal we were in this. We showed them who we are."

In the third period, Feldbergs battled valiantly in net to keep Latvia's hopes alive under a Swedish barrage. Against the flow of play, Thelin sharply foiled Oskars Briedis from the high slot.

With under two minutes left, the Latvians used their timeout and pulled Feldbergs for a sixth skater. Despite pushing hard, they couldn't find the equalizer and Sweden rejoiced with relief.

Wahlberg praised Feldbergs: "Probably the goalie of the tournament. He's been so good. We watched him play against Canada and he was the best goalie there. I think he's been unreal. I don't know if the Latvians would be this good without him. So big credit to him."

Latvian forward Bruno Osmanis missed his second straight game after being injured on a high stick in the 4-3 win over Germany on 30 December. Osmanis, who plays for HockeyAllsvenskan’s IF Bjorkloven, had been a productive top-line presence with a goal and three assists in three games.

This was just the third time Latvia has participated in the World Junior quarter-finals. With goalie Bruno Bruveris making 25 saves, the Latvians lost 2-1 to Sweden in 2022, earning their all-time best finish (seventh). Despite a two-goal effort by Dans Locmelis, they fell 7-2 to the U.S. in 2024.

"We had a really young team, and a lot of guys are going to come back next year," Mateiko said. "So they're going to have that confidence that we can battle with every team."

Latvia has never beaten Sweden at the World Juniors. In seven meetings, Sweden has outscored the small Baltic nation 45 to 11 on aggregate.