World Juniors Day 4 Recap: Edvinsson steady as Swedes cruise to victory over Team Austria

Mike Gould
Mike Gould
World Juniors Day 4 Recap: Edvinsson steady as Swedes cruise to victory over Team Austria

Detroit Red Wings prospect Simon Edvinsson blasted home his first goal of the 2022 IIHF Men’s World Junior Championship on Friday afternoon.

The 19-year-old defenseman wired a slap shot from his usual position at the left point past Team Austria goaltender Sebastian Wraneschitz to put Team Sweden up 1–0 midway through the first period on Day 4.

Edvinsson is a 6’4″, 203-pound behemoth on the blue line. He logged a team-high 18:30 on Friday to help Team Sweden cruise to a 6–0 victory over Team Austria.

Emil Andrae scored twice for the Swedes, with Isak Rosén, Fabian Lysell, and Theodor Niederbach also beating Wraneschitz. Edvinsson’s goal stood as the winner at the end of regulation.

Edvinsson is one of the top defensive prospects on the verge of entering the National Hockey League. Selected No. 6 overall by Detroit at the 2021 NHL Draft, Edvinsson signed an entry-level contract with the Red Wings in April and will battle for a spot with the club at training camp this fall.

Andrae earned Swedish player of the game honours for his two-goal performance. Team Sweden will look to remain undefeated on Sunday against a formidable opponent: Team USA.

Sykora propels Slovakia past Latvia

Team Slovakia has had a difficult time at this year’s World Juniors.

Many of the country’s top young players — including Juraj Slafkovský, Filip Mesar, and Simon Nemec — elected not to participate in the tournament for a variety of reasons. Some elected to focus on training for the upcoming hockey season, while others heeded the advice of their NHL clubs to not attend.

Slovakia’s depleted squad kicked off the World Juniors with back-to-back losses. The Slovaks fell 11–1 against Team Canada on Thursday, a loss that left forward Adam Sykora feeling dejected.

“A disaster, what happened on the ice. We didn’t do what we were supposed to do. We didn’t follow the tactical instructions from the coaches. It didn’t work for us at all,” Sykora told a Slovak outlet after the game. “We have to put this game behind us quickly. Latvia is waiting for us, we have to win.”

Well, Sykora came out strong against Team Latvia on Day 4. The New York Rangers prospect scored the Slovaks’ first goal of the game, and he did it in style.

Sykora’s goal tied the game at one late in the first period. Team Slovakia ultimately won the game 3–2 in a shootout after outshooting Team Latvia 42–25 through regulation and overtime; Sykora fired five of those shots and was named the Slovaks’ player of the game.

Team Slovakia will wrap up its round robin schedule against Team Finland on Sunday.

Day 4 Results

Team Austria 0, Team Sweden 6

Team Slovakia 3, Team Latvia 2 (SO)

Day 5 Schedule

Team Austria vs. Team USA — 12:00 p.m. MT/2:00 p.m. ET

Team Canada vs. Team Czechia — 4:00 p.m. MT/6:00 p.m. ET

Team Germany vs. Team Switzerland — 8:00 p.m. MT/10:00 p.m. ET

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