2025 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship Odds and Predictions

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On December 26, 2024, the 2025 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship dropped the puck on its 49^th annual tournament live from Ottawa, Canada. It’s the first time that “Capital City” has hosted this event since 2009, and the fourth time in the last six years that Canada has been the host nation.

Known as the WJC for short, this prestigious tournament is organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and features the 10 best national teams under the age of 20. This ice hockey spectacle is also filled with many NHL draft picks from around the globe.

The 2025 WJC runs from Boxing Day until the medal games on Sunday, January 5. The United States is the reigning WJC champion, having defeated Sweden (6-2) last year. The win marked a sixth gold medal for the United States. Canada holds the all-time record with 20 gold medals.

We went 4-0 in our WJC Quarterfinal round predictions including nailing the moneyline and spread picks for USA vs. Switzerland and Canada vs. Czechia. This blog has been updated with our Semifinal picks now that the SF matchups have been confirmed.

With that said, let’s take a look at the latest World Junior Ice Hockey Championship odds, courtesy of the top sports betting sites, and make our WJC predictions on which teams will win medals.

World Junior Ice Hockey Championship Odds

Check out the latest World Junior Ice Hockey Championship odds

Canada and the United States entered the tournament as the betting favorites, and they continued to lead the pack into the Quarterfinal rounds. However, after Canada was eliminated from the tournament in the QF round (as we predicted below), team USA is now the clear-cut favorite.

Last year’s runner-up, Sweden, is the second betting favorite to win the gold medal, and the odds-on favorite for the silver medal which would mark the second year in a row at winning the silver. Finland is the favorite to snag the bronze medal.

World Junior Ice Hockey Championship Quarterfinals

Check out our predictions for the WJC Quarterfinal matchups:

United States vs. Switzerland

The United States won Group A with 10 points and a +12 goal differential. The group also featured Canada and Finland, two teams with realistic shots at medaling. In fact, prior to the USA vs. Canada matchup in group play, team Canada was the favorite to win the gold medal.

USA had the biggest blowout victory of the tournament so far, with a 10-4 win over Germany. They crushed Latvia but then lost to Finland in OT, which was a huge surprise. Heading into the big showdown with Canada, it was unclear as to who would come out the winner of Group A.

That matchup ended with USA beating Canada 4-1 and scoring on three of seven power plays. It also showcased just how talented team USA is, as this team can win in a number of ways.

Switzerland finished in fourth place for Group B with just one victory and three losses. They have a -5 goal differential with just 10 goals for and 15 goals against.

Switzerland will not only have a tough time dealing with the speed and talent level of team USA, but I find it hard to see how this team will score against whichever goalie is in net for USA.

Trey Augustine just stopped 38 goals against Canada on New Year’s Eve, and bounced back from a rough start to the WJC. That’s bad news for the rest of the teams as it shows that USA now has no weaknesses to exploit.

Switzerland has been outscored 14 to 7 in their three losses. I see this game getting out of hand by the midway point of the second period. Look for USA’s puck movement, pace and power play to lead them to a blowout victory over Switzerland.

Bet: USA (-6666), USA -4.5 (+100)

Czechia vs. Canada

Speaking of Canada, they need to shake off a poor performance versus USA and regain their mojo. This team has shown too many inconsistencies in group play to feel good about their chances at winning the WJC. Let’s not forget that they lost to Latvia in what has to be the biggest upset in the tournament so far.

Now, the up and down Canadians will face Czechia in the Quarterfinals for a second straight year. Czechia eliminated Canada last year, on their way to a bronze medal.

Despite finishing second in Group B, Czechia’s only loss was to the undefeated Swedish squad. Yet, Czechia has the talent and recent experience to put them in the conversation for medaling once again.

Micheal Hrabal has been strong in the net for Czechia. This team has the best goal differential heading into the QF at +16. They’ve scored 25 goals and have only allowed nine. Four of those nine came from Sweden.

Sure, this team Canada is better on paper than last year’s roster, but two losses in group play has me questioning just how good they really are and whether or not they can hold up against Czechia’s offensive firepower.

Canada has greatly underperformed offensively. They scored only 10 goals in group play and could’ve lost all four games in Group A play if it weren’t for the goaltending by Carter George.

This is the best QF matchup of the 2025 WJC and it should be a great game to watch. With that said, I question the coaching decisions, line combinations, and poor offensive outings up to this point. I feel like Czechia has shown a lot more promise than Canada has.

I see Czechia winning a low-scoring game as Canada’s goaltending keeps them in the matchup. However, their lack of scoring will ultimately cost them. Take Czechia to eliminate Canada for a second straight year.

Bet: Czechia (+325), Czechia +2.5 (-154)

Sweden vs. Latvia

Sweden dominated Group B and is the only team to win all four games in the preliminary round. They also did it with the second-best goal differential at +14.

As mentioned above, Sweden won the silver medal last year after losing to USA in the championship game. This year’s roster has more depth, which is one of their biggest strengths as Sweden has worn down their opponents with wave after wave of unrelenting talent.

Being able to put out four lines with offensive firepower on every line, is truly a luxury to have in the WJC. And, they’re arguably the only team that can do this. USA is almost on par.

Additionally, their top players like Anton Wahlberg, Otto Stenberg Axel Sandin-Pellikka, and Tom Willander make this team a real contender for gold in the 2025 WJC.

On paper, this is the most lopsided matchup in the Quarterfinals. Although Latvia has pulled off some surprising moments in the WJC like upsetting Canada, I just don’t see how they win this QF matchup.

The only chance Latvia has at pulling off an unthinkable upset is by shutting out Sweden. Goalie Linards Feldbergs is the only reason why this team is even in the Quarterfinals. He leads the tournament in saves and is a real force in the net.

With that said, Sweden has the talent to crack the Latvia goaltending code. Additionally, they have the defense to suffocate and hold Eriks Mateiko scoreless. Take Sweden to win this game by at least three goals.

Bet: Sweden (-5000)

Finland vs. Slovakia

Finland is the only team to pick up a win against USA. Their lone loss came against Canada in the opening contest. Since then, they’ve gone 2-0-1 and outscored their opponents 10-4 in those games.

Finland’s Petteri Rimpinen has been one of the top goalies in the WJC. The team has given up just eight goals in the tournament and it’s a testament to not only the goalie, but the defense as well.

Finland is built on top-notch defense and a well-organized team approach. Slovakia tries to implement a similar style of play as well. However, they don’t quite have the stars that they did in recent years. Additionally, they are a notch below Finland in terms of overall success and roster talent.

Finland finished second in Group A, while Slovakia finished third in Group B. Yet, Slovakia gave up 14 goals compared to just eight by Finland. They both scored about the same number of goals with Slovakia holding the slight edge at 11 to 10.

This could be a gritty game where the winner has to grind out a victory. With that said, I like Finland to pick up a hard-fought win due to their defense and goaltending.

Bet: Finland (-667)

World Junior Ice Hockey Championship Semifinals

Following the reseeding, after the Quarterfinal games were over, we now have our Final 4 teams to battle in the Semifinals on Saturday, January 4, 2025. This is the same Final 4 that we saw in the 2024 WJC tournament. Will we get the same results as last year?

Finland vs. Sweden

Hats off to Latvia and their goalie Linards Feldbergs for giving Sweden a massive challenge in the Quarterfinal round. Sweden opened up the game with two goals in the first period, then staved off Latvia by the score of 3-2.

The Swedes featured three different goal scorers and put 50 shots on net. Swedish goalie Melker Thelin did allow two goals on just 13 shots. So, while it’s great that the Swedish defense prevented Latvia from getting more shots on goal, the fact that they scored two goals on only 13 shots is a concern.

With that said, the Swedish team acknowledged that they will have to perform at a high level for a full 60 minutes and not play like the game is over once they go up by 2 or 3 goals. That’s definitely a true statement as they head into the Semifinal matchup versus Finland.

Finland plays a similar style game as the Swedes do. They also followed a similar QF performance as team Sweden did. Finland got out to a 3-0 lead in the first period before holding off Slovakia 5-3 on Thursday.

Finland’s goalie Petteri Rimpinen is a big reason why the team won their QF matchup. He faced 36 shots and stopped 33 of them. In fact, he stopped just under 20 shots in the second period alone.

Conversely, the Finnish offense only had 18 shots on net, but were very efficient as they scored on five of them. However, giving up twice as many shots as they put on net is a recipe for disaster in the Semifinal round against Sweden.

Finland hasn’t reached the Gold Medal game since 2022. Sweden lost to USA in the Gold Medal game last year. This SF matchup marks the first time that these two teams have played in a medal round since the 2022 WJC in Edmonton. That year, Finland defeated Sweden 1-0.

This weekend, I see the Swedes getting revenge. Firstly, they have the better team due to their depth. The only chance Finland has is if Rimpinen can shut out Sweden or hold them to one goal. That’s not a far-fetched idea either considering the Finnish goalie leads the WJC with a .941 save percentage and is the best goalie left in the tournament at 2.0 goals against average.

With that said, I believe Sweden will take advantage of Finland’s lack of shot volume by pouring it on Rimpinen. Remember, they put up 50 shots in the QF round. They might not get to 50 this game. But if Slovakia can get 36 shots, then Sweden can as well.

This game is going to be physical, gritty and fun for hockey fans that like the rugged style of play. I’m taking Sweden to win this game due to their offense and timely goaltending.

Bet: Sweden (-167)

Czechia vs. USA

Some people called me crazy with my Quarterfinal predictions for Canada vs. Czechia. However, as you can see from above, I nailed both the moneyline and spread picks for Czechia. Not only did I pick them to cover the 2.5 goals but I also picked them to upset Team Canada and they did.

Czechia beat Canada 4-3 by scoring a power play goal with 39.4 seconds. It was a dramatic ending to this game and one we’re not surprised at. Canada’s offense was bit letdown all tournament long and finished with just 13 goals in five games. That’s their lowest total ever as they tied their 1998 mark.

The Czechs are trying to win a third consecutive medal. They finished with the bronze last year by defeating Finland. They also took the silver in 2023. It’s been three decades since they have won three straight medals.

One medal we know they won’t win is the gold medal. And, that’s because they will lose to USA on Saturday. Team USA is the best squad in the tournament. They have the most top-tier talent and lead the WJC with 29 goals scored.

The offensive firepower is unmatched by any of the four teams left. And, the Czechs won’t be able to match this offensive onslaught. Unfortunately, they also won’t be able to slow down this offense.

They’ve beat Switzerland 25 out of 27 games and it’s hard to imagine that the Czechs are going to be able to do any better than the Swiss team did. USA is averaging nearly six goals a game and have outscored their opponents 11-3 over the last two games.

This is the eight Semifinal appearance for USA in the last 10 tournaments. As mentioned above, they’re seeking a second consecutive gold medal, which would mark the first time USA has ever accomplished that feat.

To do so, they will need to keep riding the momentum of their power play units. Offensively, they’re 7-for-21 which is a 33.3% efficiency. They’ve also killed nearly 79% of the power plays that they’ve faced.

12 different players have scored for USA, which furthers to prove their vast depth and versatility. The top line of Leonard, Hagens, and Perreault have a total of 10 goals and 21 points. Czechia doesn’t have the talent to match this firepower nor the defensive stalwarts to slow them down.

Defenseman Cole Hutson has been fantastic this tourney with eight points on two goals, six assists. But, goalie Trey Augustine has come on strong over the last two games and I expect that trend to continue. He led USA to the gold medal last year and there’s no reason to think he can’t do it again.

USA will beat the Czechs. The only question is by how much. Czechia’s goalie Michael Hrabal is solid but he has given up 2.52 GAA and sits with a .920 save percentage. He allowed Canada’s poor offense to score three goals in the latter portions of the QF matchup.

Look for Team USA to score early and often. I’m not sure they will duplicate their seven-goal outburst in the Quarterfinals, but a five-goal effort is definitely a possibility. They will also win by at least two goals as their defense is better than Czechia and Augustine is playing better than Hrabal at this point of the tournament.

Bet: USA (-400), -1.5 goals (+115)

World Junior Ice Hockey Championship Predictions

Based on what we’ve seen in Group Play and the Quarterfinals, Team USA is our pick to win the gold medal in the 2025 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

Sure, they had a temporary lapse in their game against Finland, but this team is on a mission to win consecutive championships for their first time ever.

USA has the best line in the WJC with Ryan Leonard, James Hagens and Gabe Perreault. Cole Hutson has been stellar as well. Yet, what has me the most confident in their chance to win gold is that their goaltending is getting better.

Trey Augustine looked fantastic in beating Canada and Switzerland over the last two games. He’s bounced back from poor early performances to make USA the best overall team in the WJC.

I hate to take the easy route here, but I think USA beats Sweden in the gold medal game once again. I think they’re on a collision course for a gold medal rematch. I give the slight edge to USA in that one.

As for the bronze, could we actually see Czechia win it for a second straight year?

They got past Canada, as we predicted, and they beat Finland last year for the bronze. With that said, I’m leaning towards Finland picking up the bronze this year. I like their goaltending and defense to lead them to their 18^th all-time WJC medal. Last year was the first time that Finland didn’t medal since 2018.

Additionally, it’s been over three decades since the Czechs have medaled in three consecutive tournaments. I see Finland edging them out in an exciting battle.

Bet: USA wins gold (+150), Sweden wins silver (+250), Finland wins bronze (+450)