Simon Edvinsson rises from the ice, scores winning goal for Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings Simon Edvinsson, Mason Appleton & Todd McLellan, Dec, 28,2025 in Detroit.
The United States has already clinched a spot in the quarterfinals of the world junior hockey championship.
Now, it’s a matter of seeding.
The USA (2-0) will take on Slovakia (1-1) on Monday, Dec. 29 (6 p.m. ET, NHL Network) in its third preliminary round game of the tournament for the world’s best under-20 players. The Americans wrap up the round robin with a game against Sweden (3-0 after Monday’s rout of Germany) on New Year’s Eve.
Team USA beat Germany 6-3 in the opener then got by Switzerland 2-1, a game in which No. 1 defenseman Cole Hutson was taken off the ice on a stretcher after being hit in the head by a shot. He was taken to the hospital for evaluation and released. Hutson is day-to-day and won’t play on Monday.
USA TODAY is providing live updates on the USA vs. Slovakia game. Follow along:
MIchal Svrcek scores on a goalmouth scramble to give Slovakia the lead. Slovakia 4, USA 3
James Hagens scores from the slot with 44.1 seconds left in the second period to tie the game for the USA. It’s his first goal of the tournament. USA 4, Slovakia 4
Michal Pradel stops Cole Eiserman from in tight.
Michal Svrcek scores on a goalmouth scramble to give Slovakia the lead and another power-play goal. Slovakia 4, USA 3
Chase Reid is called for roughing. A little bit of embellishment?
Ryker Lee makes a perfectly placed shot over Michal Pradel’s shoulder to give the USA its first power-play goal and a tie game. USA 3, Slovakia 3
Michal Capos is called for tripping. The USA starts its second unit and nearly puts one in, but it’s stopped on the goal line.
Brendan McMorrow gets the goal on a rebound for his second point of the game. AJ Spellacy adds a secondary assist and also has two points. Slovakia 3, USA 2
Slovakia restores its two-goal lead after a USA turnover on the power play. Adam Belusko got a lot of speed on that short-handed shot. The USA gets some chances after but falls to 0-for-7 on the power play in the tournament. Slovakia 3, USA 1
Slovakia is called for too many men on the ice. The USA has yet to score a power-play goal in the tournament.
Big goal by the USA. The Americans block a shot and break down the ice. A.J. Spellacy reaches out and redirects a pass from Brendan McMorrow past Michal Pradel. The USA kills the rest of the penalty and was the more dangerous team. Slovakia 2, USA 1
LJ Mooney is called for interference. Slovakia already has scored on the power play.
The USA trails 2-0.
The USA overcame adversity in their last game by winning after Cole Hutson left the ice on a stretcher. Now they’ll have to overcome adversity on the scoreboard as they trail for the first time in the tournament. They’re without Hutson again as he sits out from the Game 2 injury. The USA picked up play later in the period and trails 8-6 on shots.
Stiga, who had last season’s golden goal, has a breakaway but goalie Michal Pradel forces him to shoot wide. The USA has only two shots so far.
Tomas Chrenko scores on the power play from the left faceoff circle through a screen. It’s his fourth goal of the tournament. Slovakia 2, USA 0
Kamil Bednarik is called for holding.
Tobias Pitka takes a drop pass from Tobias Tomik and beats Caleb Heil blocker side. This is the first time that the USA has trailed in the tournament. Slovakia 1, USA 0
Goalie matchup is USA’s Caleb Heil vs. Slovakia’s Michal Pradel.
What channel is USA vs. Slovakia world juniors hockey game today?
TV channel: NHL Network
Livestream: Fubo, which offers a free trial to new subscribers, or Sling TV.
Follow world junior championships on Fubo
What time is USA vs. Slovakia world juniors hockey game today?
Date: Monday, Dec. 29
Time: 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. local time)
The game is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. local time) at the Grand Casino Arena in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the home of the Minnesota Wild.
World juniors USA vs Slovakia: How to watch, stream
Time: 6 p.m. ET on Monday, Dec. 29
Location: Grand Casino Arena (Saint Paul, Minnesota)
TV: NHL Network
Streaming: Fubo and certain levels of Sling TV carry NHL Network.
Today’s world juniors hockey schedule
All times p.m. ET
Monday, Dec. 29
- Sweden 8, Germany 1:. Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell, Flyers prospect Jack Berglund and draft-eligible Viggo Bjorck each scored twice as Sweden improved to 3-0. Germany’s Elias Pul tied the game in the first period on a 2-on-0 break but Sweden pulled away with four goals in the second period.
- Czechia 2, Finland 1 (OT): Blues prospect Adam Jiricek scored 3:39 into overtime to give Czechia the win. He was alone in front and put his stick between his legs before shooting. Czechia opened the scoring on a five-minute power play after Finland’s Veeti Vaisanen was ejected for cross-checking. Emil Hemming tied the game in the final 20 seconds to force overtime.
- Slovakia vs. USA, 6 p.m.
- Canada vs. Denmark, 8:30 p.m.
This is the teams’ 21st meeting. The USA has won 15 times.
Teams get three points for a regulation win, two for an overtime win, one for an overtime loss and zero for a regulation loss. Sweden has nine points. The USA would have nine if it beats Slovakia in regulation. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head competition so even if the Americans lose, they could win their group with a win against Sweden in regulation.
The USA is adjusting its defense pairings and first power play unit with Cole Hutson out.
Team USA No. 1 defenseman Cole Hutson will sit out Monday’s game against Slovakia. He remains day-to-day after being hit in the head by a shot on Saturday and leaving the ice on a stretcher.
Will Zellers leads the USA with three goals and four points. He has the winning goal in both of the USA’s first two games. Defenseman Adam Kleber has a plus-minus rating of +5, which ties him with Hutson.
Tomas Chrenko had a hat trick against Germany. Adam Nemec, whose older brother Simon plays for the New Jersey Devils, has two assists in the tournament.
Who will win gold, silver and bronze at this year’s tournament? Who will take home the individual awards? Here are predictions from The Hockey News staff.
