2026 U-18 World Championship: Preston, Valentini highlight top standouts from Day 2
Day 2 is in the books, and the two teams with the biggest local fanbases are the ones feeling the happiest right now.
Slovakia and Czechia have managed to take the top spot in their respective groups after accumulating their second consecutive wins. Canada and Denmark, meanwhile, took their first victories of the tournament to give themselves a bit of life.
Germany, Latvia, Sweden and Norway came out on the losing ends of the four respective contests.
Here’s a look at the top performers from Day 2 of the 2026 U-18 World Championship from Trencin and Bratislava, Slovakia.
Denmark 4, Germany 1
Denmark’s bid to stay in the top division of the U-18s started off on the right foot today thanks to a 4-1 win over Germany.
The Germans struck first, with Tim Hartmann scoring early in the opening frame. But goals from Andreas Klove Mogensen and Lucas Althof gave the Danes all they needed to secure the win. AKM and Alexander Lepola would each score empty-netters to close out the 4-1 victory.
Germany now owns an 0-2 record to start the tournament, meaning they’ll need points against both USA and Czechia to avoid falling into the relegation round. If both Denmark and Germany finish with three points each, the Danes would have the tiebreaker based on head-to-head.
So, now the pressure’s on for the Germans to get themselves back into this.
Denmark
#1 Anton Wilde, G: Wilde had a rough go at the World Juniors, but looked much more in control today. Most notably, it felt like his glove hand was on full display today. It didn’t seem like he had any issues tracking pucks through traffic today, and his footwork was impressive, too. Wilde is a big, 6-foot-4 goaltender who takes up a ton of space. Using it to his advantage has proven to be an issue at times, but he definitely has a ton of promise and will be Denmark’s U-20 starter for at least another two years.
#6 Emil Saaby Jakobsen, D: Every time Jakobsen hit the ice, you could tell something was going to happen. He was the fastest defender on the team by far, using quick hands to create high-quality opportunities. He’s an excellent puck-mover who reads plays at a high level and can lead the team offensively from the point. Being 6-foot-4 doesn’t hurt, either. There’s absolutely something here as a potential late-round pick.
#23 Andreas Klove Mogensen, LW: AKM was my favorite Danish forward today. The mid-sized winger set the fastest speed of anyone at 35.1 KM/H, and he scored for good measure. He has been very productive in U-18 competition this year, and was actually one of the best players in the second-tier Danish pro league. I’m not sure he’s strong or skilled enough to get drafted this year, but scouts are keeping a close eye on him right now.
Germany
#9 Max Calce, C (2027): Calce is Germany’s best player at this tournament and it’s not close. He made an outstanding pass to set up the 1-0 goal, dancing by a couple of Danish defenders before finding Hartmann in the slot. Calce is a tremendous playmaker who sees the offensive zone better than most other players his age. At 16, Calce has already been leaned on heavily in this event to create high-quality opportunities, and he has delivered with two strong showings.
#13 Adrian Kuhn, RW: Kuhn had a decent year in the German U-20 league but has been silent for the most part internationally. I noticed him quite a lot today – he was one of the fastest skaters on the ice. He needs to play with a bit more urgency but he does a nice job of buzzing around the ice and looking for passes.
#23 Tim Hartmann, LW (2027): Hartmann was born a week before he would have been eligible for the 2028 NHL Draft. The 16-year-old is quite impressive with the puck, and after scoring today, he’s already up to two points as an underaged prospect. Scouts have been mixed on his potential, but he’s quick and seemingly in the slot quite often. I like his quick one-shot release, but I wish he’d take it a bit more often.
Canada 6, Latvia 0
After a surprise loss to Slovakia on Wednesday, Canada put themselves in the win column for the first time at the 2026 U-18s after beating Latvia 6-0.
It didn’t take long for the Canadians to capitalize. Thomas Vandenberg scored on Canada’s first shot of the game just 52 seconds in, which proved to be the game-winner. Tynan Lawrence would add the second goal of the game at 12:59 before Adam Valentini tallied one early in the second to make it 3-0.
Dima Zhilkin scored the team’s lone goal on the man advantage, converting on a pass from Valentini to make it 4-0. Kohyn Eshkawkogan and Zach Olsen added goals late in the third to help Canada’s goal differential, with Latvia struggling to keep up with Canada’s pace.
Canada will get Friday off before taking on Norway on Saturday. Latvia, meanwhile, will have a short turnaround with a battle against Finland on Friday evening.
Canada
#14 Mathis Preston, RW: Preston is having an absolute banger of a tournament. He’s playing with an insane level of confidence, making every pass look so easy. He scored the lone goal against Slovakia, set up the first goal today and nearly had another assist in the second period today. It just feels like he’s capable of creating magic every time he snags the puck, and loves exploiting that open space. Preston has been Canada’s best player through two games, no doubt about it.
#19 Adam Valentini, LW: Valentini scored on a nice individual effort in the second. Latvia didn’t really challenge him defensively, but Valentini still showed that he’s capable of highly skilled moves in open space. He’s easily one of the most underrated players on Canada – sure, he’s small. But he’s not afraid of getting into dirty areas to make things happen, and he has the numbers teams love to see in college. Now back playing against his own age group, Valentini is off to a good start.
#23 Thomas Vanendberg, C: Vandenberg was promoted to the second line, and he wasted no time scoring his first of the tournament. The Ottawa 67’s forward has a great shot release, and nearly added two more goals in this one. He’s smart, quick and consistently creates opportunities while playing with speed. Canada’s coaching staff might have found a perfect fit for the Providence College commit.
#24 Dima Zhilkin, LW (2027): Zhilkin had a goal and an assist on this one to help thrust him up Canada’s scoring charts. The 2027 draft prospect is skilled and feisty, and he’s not afraid to push guys around in front of the opposing net. His hockey sense is impressive, and he has quick hands, too. Zhilkin plays an overly aggressive game for someone standing just 5-foot-10, and he made Saginaw better this year as a result.
#26 Maddox Dagenais, RW: Dagenais was demoted to Canada’s bottom six, but it clearly didn’t slow him down. He had six shots through the first two periods of play alone, showing a level of confidence that Canada needed further down the lineup. He’s physical, smart but also plays with a ton of skill, too. Mix it altogether and there’s a reason why scouts see him as a first-round draft pick this June.
Latvia
#29 Ilja Nikitins, G: Nikitins had to face 31 shots through 40 minutes as Latvia struggled to get out of their zone. The game started on a sour note with a goal against on the first shot. But Nikitins was excellent the rest of the way, making some huge stops to keep Latvia in it. It’s hard to win when your team can’t score, but Nikitins still handled the pressure of a determined Canadian attack quite well in his first start of the tournament.
Czechia 2, Sweden 1
If you like high-scoring affairs, this one wasn’t for you.
But if you’re a fan of Czech hockey, you’re likely thrilled that your team has taken top spot in Group B thanks to a 2-1 victory over Sweden on Thursday.
Both teams will get Friday off, before Czechia takes on Germany on Saturday. The Swedes, meanwhile, will face the United States in the late game in Bratislava.
The Czechs were the much better team in the second period, and it ultimately resulted in a 1-0 lead. Adam Klaus made a great move after getting the puck from Dominik Ripa, pulling it back and firing it past Kevin Tornblom for the icebreaker. Sweden would get some life with a power-play marker at 50:35, with Marcus Nordmark wiring a shot past Martin Psohlavec. But the Czechs would get a goal in the final minute from defenseman Jakub Vanecek, securing the win.
Czechia
#5 Matyáš Michálek, D (2028): That’s two solid games for Michálek, a 2010-born blueliner. Despite being a double underager, Michálek was given some heavy minutes to help shut down the Swedish attackers. He’s 6-foot-3 and uses his long reach to poke pucks away and keep opponents to the perimeter. His mobility is impressive for his size, too. I’ve really enjoyed his early showings at the U-18 level and think he has a bright future.
#24 Šimon Katolický, LW: Katolický was one of the players Czechia needed to step up in this tournament. Once viewed as a potential first-round pick, Katolický had an underwhelming season and ultimately looks more like a late-round prospect. Today, though, he was Czechia’s best forward in the early going, firing plenty of shots toward the Swedish net. He didn’t score, but it felt like he was playing with the level of confidence we were hoping to see from the get-go. He’s had a rough year against U-18 national team competition, but he likes to shoot and has a huge 6-foot-4 frame.
Sweden
#1 Kevin Törnblom, G (2027): It truly felt like Törnblom was the only Swede that showed up for the majority of the game. Törnblom was solid in both the pre-tournament game against Latvia and the opener against Germany. Today, the Swedes simply looked too slow for the hungry Czechs, meaning Törnblom had to be excellent to keep things tight.
#11 Alexander Command, C: Command isn’t flashy, but he’s smart. He’s excellent in the faceoff dot, and he’s very reliable defensively, too. Command doesn’t seem to have many off shifts, and that’s because he’s effective away from the puck, too. So while he didn’t score today, it felt like he still did enough with and without the puck to keep scouts impressed.
Norway 1, Slovakia 6
The Slovaks have taken top spot in Group A following a dominant 6-1 win over Norway on Thursday.
Both teams will get Friday off before returning on Saturday. Norway will start the action in Trencin against Canada, while Slovakia will cap off the evening against Finland. Norway’s most important game of the tournament comes on Sunday, where they’ll fight Latvia in a game that will likely decide who heads to the relegation game. Jakub Floris and Tomas Selic each scored in the first period to give Slovakia a solid lead.
Norway’s August Jones-Nilsson cut the lead in half at 25:35 to make things a bit more interesting, but Slovakia dominated from there. Michal Jakubec would make it 3-1 before the end of the first, while Ivan Matta and Maxim Simko would score their first goals of the tournament less than a minute apart in the third. Selic’s second of the night capped off the day’s action, with Slovakia winning 6-2.
Norway
#17 Niklas Aaram Olsen, LW: As expected, most of Norway’s offense chances seemed to surround whatever Aaram Olsen was doing. He’s a skilled forward who has spent the past three years trying to lift Norway into relevance at this event. For the most part, he has done quite a bit to make it happen. He’s a play-driver who loves to shoot from everywhere. Aaram Olsen didn’t score today, but he was easily the most impactful forward Norway had.
Slovakia
#12 Matej Bereš, D (2027): Bereš had an assist, a couple of quality chances and played some solid two-way hockey. He’s a strong skater coming off a year where he played close to half his hockey against men. Bereš is not much of a point producer, but he plays a simple game with the puck and isn’t afraid to fire it when needed. I didn’t notice him much against Canada, but thought he looked solid today.
#22 Adam Goljer, D: Goljer finished with a two-point night, leading the charge from the blueline. His assists came after the game was clearly one-sided, but it felt like he didn’t have a bad shift. When he’s on his game, few Slovak players can command the attention he does. Goljer is one of my favorite blueliners in this class – I do see potential upside as a late-first-round pick.
#7 Michal Jakubec, C: Jakubec had a goal and an assist today. It was a well-rounded effort for a guy who has put up modest numbers with the U-18 team throughout the year. I thought he grinded well, made some solid plays through the middle and didn’t lose many puck battles. I could see a team drafting him in the latter rounds as a potential energy line guy.
#19 Timothy Kazda, RW (2027): Kazda scored the game-winning goal against Canada, and then kept things buzzing with one of the most active sticks of anyone today. He combined his speed and puck skills to be a possession machine, and he had a few decent chances near the net. I think the Boston College commit is going to put himself in the conversation to go in the top two rounds next year because his skill and hockey sense are both high-end.
#24 Tomáš Selič, RW (2027): The 16-year-old had an outstanding game. He scored twice today, displaying a ton of power with his shot. He’s big at 6-foot-3, but his game is more about generating scoring chances in tight spaces. That second goal was nice, though. He’s been productive at every level, but this was easily his best game in a Slovak uniform.
#25 Samuel Šramatý, LW: Slovakia’s fourth line was buzzing today. Jakubec scored a goal, but Šramatý was maybe even more impactful. He led the line in scoring chances and shot generation, and he nabbed an assist on Jakubec’s goal. Šramatý is a mid-sized forward who had a difficult year in terms of registering points (he played just about every level humanly possible in Slovakia this year), but he has been one of Slovakia’s better players through two games.
2026 IIHF U-18 Men’s World Championship Round Robin Standings
Group A
| Rank | Team | GP | Points |
| 1. | Slovakia | 2 | 6 |
| 2. | Canada | 2 | 3 |
| 3. | Finland | 1 | 3 |
| 4. | Latvia | 1 | 0 |
| 5. | Norway | 2 | 0 |
Group B
| Rank | Team | GP | Points |
| 1. | Czechia | 2 | 5 |
| 2. | Sweden | 2 | 3 |
| 3. | Denmark | 1 | 3 |
| 4. | USA | 1 | 1 |
| 5. | Germany | 2 | 0 |
2026 IIHF U-18 Men’s World Championship Round Robin Schedule
| Date | Time (ET) | Matchup | Location |
| Fri. April 24 | 10:00 AM | USA vs. Denmark | Bratislava |
| 12:00 PM | Finland vs. Latvia | Trenčín | |
| Sat. April 25 | 6:00 AM | Germany vs. Czechia | Bratislava |
| 8:00 AM | Norway vs. Canada | Trenčín | |
| 10:00 AM | Sweden vs. USA | Bratislava | |
| 12:00 PM | Slovakia vs. Finland | Trenčín | |
| Sun. April 26 | 10:00 AM | Czechia vs. Denmark | Bratislava |
| 12:00 PM | Latvia vs. Norway | Trenčín | |
| Mon. April 27 | 6:00 AM | Denmark vs. Sweden | Bratislava |
| 8:00 AM | Finland vs. Canada | Trenčín | |
| 10:00 AM | USA vs. Germany | Bratislava | |
| 12:00 PM | Latvia vs. Slovakia | Trenčín |