Blackhawks fans guide to the World Junior Championship

December 26 is known by several names around the world. Throughout Europe and the Christian world, it’s known as Saint Stephen’s Day. In the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, it’s celebrated as Boxing Day. For hockey fans, this date is circled because it’s the first day of the IIHF World Junior Championship!

This year’s tournament is back in the United States, hosted by the Twin Cities, with games in St. Paul and Minneapolis, MN. Team USA is looking to win its third straight gold medal, but that will not be an easy task. The preliminary round kicks off today and goes through New Year’s Eve. The quarterfinals begin on Jan. 2, with the gold medal game on Jan. 5 at the Grand Casino Arena.

The Chicago Blackhawks will have three prospects, including two of their three 2025 first-round picks, playing in this year’s tournament. Here is everything you need to know heading into today’s first set of games.

A.J. Spellacy Makes the Cut

Team USA enters this year’s tournament as the two-time and defending champion. They are bringing back eight players who won the gold medal last year. Out of the 25 players on the roster, 22 have been drafted by NHL teams. One of those players is the Blackhawks’ 2024 third-round draft pick, A.J. Spellacy.

The 19-year-old forward was not a sure thing heading into last week’s training camp, but he’s been included on the roster. He’s midway through his fourth and final Ontario Hockey League season for the Windsor Spitfires. He has nine goals and 17 points in 27 games this season. He had 21 goals and 38 points in 67 games during his draft season, and 18 goals and 37 points in 62 games last season, so he’s on pace for a similar year. His size and speed make him a tough player to match up against, and he could be an effective bottom-six player in a short tournament.

The Chicagoland area is well represented on Team USA, as Illinois has seven players on the final roster, tied with Minnesota for the most. Asher Barnett (Wilmette), Kamil Bednarik (Elmhurst), Cole Hutson (North Barrington), Nick Kempf (Morton Grove), Brady Knowling (Chicago), Ryker Lee (Wilmette), and Cole McKninney (Lake Forest) prove that the Chicago area is a hockey hotbed.

Anton Frondell Looks to Dominate

The Blackhawks’ top draft pick of 2025, Anton Frondell, will be an important player for Sweden this year. This will be his first go-round in the U20 World Junior Championship. He played in the U18 tournament last year, scoring a goal and recording two assists in five games.

Frondell has had an up-and-down season with Djurgårdens IF in the Swedish Hockey League. His playing time and role have fluctuated throughout the year, which is not unusual for a young player in Europe. He has 10 goals and 15 points in 25 SHL games.

Sweden is bringing a relatively inexperienced team to this year’s tournament. Their roster has played 21 total World Junior Championship games. Only Denmark has played fewer games, with zero, as this is their first tournament appearance since 2019. Frondell will serve as one of Sweden’s assistant captains and should be chomping at the bit to play against players his own age. He had two goals and an assist in his two pre-tournament exhibition games.

Vasclav Nestrasil Looks to Continue Big Season

The Blackhawks used the 25th pick of last summer’s NHL Entry Draft to select Vaclav Nestrasil. He was a late riser up the team’s draft board, and it didn’t take long to see why they were so high on him. He is midway through a tremendous freshman season at UMass and will represent Czechia at the World Junior Championship.

This will be Nestrasil’s first World Junior Championship at any age level. He’s got 10 goals and 20 points through his first 18 NCAA games with the Minutemen. The 6-foot-6 forward is exceeding everyone’s expectations this season, including his own, as he told Scott Powers of The Athletic earlier this week.

“Well, it kind of is surprising, but I kind of went into the season with that mindset because I didn’t want to wait. Obviously, there were a lot of thoughts of me being the tall kid, no weight. So everybody said I was going to adjust, and I just kind of didn’t want to do that. Like, obviously, I still got to adjust, but I just wanted to jump into NCAA hockey and produce as soon as possible. I’m glad it’s kind of been going so far, so that was kind of my mindset.”

Czechia is always a tough draw in this tournament. They are not far behind the top four nations of the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. They have won the bronze medal two years in a row and are looking to take the next step. A big tournament from Nestrasil will go a long way in getting a bump up the podium.

World Junior Championship Schedule

Pool A

United States
Sweden
Slovakia
Switzerland
Germany

Pool B

Finland
Czechia
Canada
Latvia
Denmark

Friday Dec. 26

Sweden vs Slovakia, 12 pm
Denmark vs Finland, 2:30 pm
Germany vs United States, 5 pm
Czechia vs Canada, 7:30 pm

Saturday Dec. 27

Slovakia vs Germany, 1 pm
Latvia vs Canada, 3:30 pm
United States vs Switzerland, 5 pm
Denmark vs Czechia, 7:30 pm

Sunday, Dec. 28

Sweden vs Switzerland, 1 pm
Finland vs Latvia, 3:30 pm

Monday, Dec. 29

Germany vs Sweden, 12 pm
Finland vs Czechia, 2:30 pm
Slovakia vs United States, 5 pm
Canada vs Denmark, 7:30 pm

Tuesday, Dec. 30

Switzerland vs Germany, 1 pm
Latvia vs Denmark, 2:30 pm

Wednesday, Dec. 31

Switzerland vs Slovakia, 12 pm
Czechia vs Latvia, 2:30 pm
United States vs Sweden, 5 pm
Canada vs Finland, 7:30 pm

Friday, Jan. 2

Relegation Game, 11:30 am
Quarterfinal – Game 1, 1 pm
Quarterfinal – Game 2, 3:30 pm
Quarterfinal – Game 3, 5 pm
Quarterfinal – Game 4, 7:30 pm

Sunday, Jan 4

Semifinal – Game 1, 2:30 pm
Semifinal – Game 2, 7:30 pm

Monday, Jan 5

Bronze Medal Game, 2:30 pm
Gold Medal Game, 7:30 pm

All games CT time and can be seen on the NHL Network.