Scouting Notebook: Top performers from Day 4 of 2023 U-17 World Hockey Challenge
What an eventful day in Prince Edward Island.
After a one-day break on Sunday, all six teams returned for a three-game slate on Monday. It started with Finland narrowly beating Czechia 3-2, preventing the Czechs from earning an automatic bye into the semifinal on the weekend.
The evening games were quite something. A mega first-period performance resulted in Sweden beating Canada Red 8-5, while Canada White and the United States needed a shootout to solve their differences. In the skills competition, Canada outmatched USA 3-1, handing the United States its first tournament loss.
There’s just one day left in round-robin play before the teams take another break on Wednesday. The United States are guaranteed a bye into Friday’s action, so they’ll rest up and enjoy the Eastern Canadian lifestyle for a few days. Everything else, though, is up for grabs.
1. USA, 10P
2. Sweden, 7P
3. Canada White, 5P
4. Czechia, 5P
5. Canada Red, 5P
6. Finland, 4P
Canada White
#14 Cole Temple, LW (2025): Temple came alive on Monday, scoring twice and generally creating havoc around the net. He was Canada’s best player between the two teams, and a big reason why White was so competitive against a red-hot American team.
#30 Koen Cleaver, G (2025): It’s hard to make your tournament midway through a 3-1 game, but Cleaver held the fort and kept things close as Canada White forced overtime against the tournament’s top team. Jack Ivankovic struggled after a solid start, and Cleaver shut the door and helped shift the momentum. That shootout-winning save was pretty, too.
#20 Emile Guité, RW (2025): Another great showing for Guité, who had a goal and two assists. That third line is thriving, although Guité seems to gel with just about anyone. He’s quietly been one of Canada’s most impressive forwards.
USA
#59 Charlie Trethewey, D (2025): USA’s best defenseman, Trethewey now has three goals and nine points. He nabbed an assist on USA’s first goal, a point shot that Cole McKinney knocked in. He played a good shutdown game after that for a nice, complete performance.
#43 Richard Gallant, LW (2025): Neither goal was conventional, but nobody asks how they went in, right? Between a bounce off a skate in front and followed up by a goal from behind the net, Gallant made the most of his opportunity. But those two goals, as silly as they may have looked, help the Americans get ahead in arguably their worst game effort of the tournament. When there’s a will, there’s a way.
#40 Harrison Boettiger, G (2025): Canada White was going to walk away with that one if it wasn’t for Boettiger. The American keeper was peppered with chances in the third and stood tall, and he made some five-alarm stops in overtime to force a shootout. None were better than the his breakaway save with 40 seconds to go in overtime. We’ll forget about that shootout, though.
Canada Red
#15 Ryan Roobroeck, LW (2026): Roobroeck has had some quiet moments, but his first-period effort was the best I’ve seen of him since perhaps his U-15 days. The big power forward landed a big double hit early in the first period and then scored Canada’s first goal off of a wrister on the rush. Hopefully, we see more of that this week.
#9 Gavin McKenna, LW (2026): Surprise! Even in a rough showing for Canada Red, McKenna was there to look his best. He scored Canada’s third goal and then set up Cole Reschny for the 8-4 goal just 12 seconds into the third, giving Canada some life. It didn’t matter in the end, but he still looked great.
#17 Braeden Cootes, C (2025): The job was simple: stand in front and create havoc. He assisted on Canada’s first goal and then scored one of his own after blocking a point shot and jamming it past Swedish keeper William Forsberg. That’s the type of effort the coaching staff was hoping for.
Sweden
#15 Ivar Stenberg, LW (2026): It’s hard to beat a natural hat-trick in the first period. A fourth goal helped, too. Whether it be taking advantage of a turnover, fighting for puck possession or using his speed to create a breakaway, Stenberg has done a little bit of everything for the Swedes in this tournament. One of the best players, no doubt.
#14 Filip Ekberg, LW (2025): That pass to Anton Frondell while falling down to make it 1-0 was pretty. Ekberg plays a flashy game, never giving up on the chance to set up a teammate in a scoring rush. That play could have easily died there, but Ekberg doesn’t give up – then, or any other part of this tournament.
#22 Milton Gastrin, C (2025): Scouts have raved about Gastrin’s two-way play in this tournament, but he had just one assist to show for. He finally scored at 6:27, giving Sweden some early breathing room. Gastrin has good vision, but in this case, he used his body to overpower his opponents and fire home a shot.
#5 Sascha Boumedienne, D (2025): One thing you need to know about the USHL defender: he’s deceptive. Boumedienne made it a 3-1 game after waiting for a Canadian attacker to pressure before faking him out and skating toward the net. Stenberg then knocked his shot in for his first of three goals. One scout told me earlier today that “Boumedienne is the smartest player here, and he’s going to skyrocket up draft boards” with his play in PEI. We’ll see what happens.
Czechs
#25 Matej Pekar, LW (2025): Pekar might be the one Czech forward who hasn’t had an off game yet. He’s been consistently good, and was the driving force behind the 3-2 goal that brought the Czechs back into it. Pekar would benefit from using his teammates a bit more, but he has consistently put the puck in a position to score, and he’s been rewarded with a few points along the way.
#1 Ondrej Stebetak, G (2025): Has Stebetak been the best goaltender? His stats say yes. He’s been excellent throughout the tournament, and he was outstanding in this one as he kept the Czechs in it despite difficulties with special teams. I know scouts are loving what they’re seeing. He’s not big, but he’s athletic and cuts angles off well.
#17 Adam Benak, C (2025): For what it’s worth, it was Benak’s best game of the tournament, setting up the first Czech goal. It’s still been a quiet tournament for the small forward many believe is one of the best to come from the country in years, but today was still the type of performance he needed to build confidence.
Finland
#3 Jesper Kotajarvi, D (2025): Kotajarvi was one of Finland’s standout defenders the past few games, but had nothing to show for on the scoresheet. Today, he opened the scoring and added another in the second period to make it 2-0, matching his goal output with Tappara’s U-20 team. He’s a pass-first defender, but when he shoots, he makes it count. His performance helped spark a Finnish team that needed just about anything to work in their favor.
#11 Rasmus Kämäräinen, RW (2025): Right place, right time. Kämäräinen scored the second Finnish power-play goal, but he also had some other solid chances throughout the game. He seems best when he can fire shots in free space, which isn’t always available to him. But as a shooter, he’s been good.
#1 Patrik Kerkola, G (2025): With 31 saves, including some five-bell attempts in the third period, Kerkola kept the Finns in command. It wasn’t easy, but he kept focused and moved well in the crease. His stats aren’t great, but he’s been Finland’s best player all tournament long.