3 Takeaways From Canada’s 4-0 Win vs. Finland – The Hockey Writers World Junior Hockey Championship Latest News, Analysis & More

Canada opened their 2025 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Championship (WJC) with a 4-0 victory over Finland. This one was pretty convincing even acknowledging the two late insurance goals they potted to make a Finnish comeback go from improbable to impossible. What were three big takeaways from the night?

Canada Dominates Puck Possession But Not the Scoreboard

Against one of the better teams in this tournament, Canada didn’t give an inch. They relentlessly pelted shots at the Finnish defense through much of the game, so their 4-0 victory—aided by two goals in the final five minutes—was underwhelming on the scoreboard. While such a decisive on-ice product against a good team is a positive, not being able to cash in on numerous opportunities could be a concern moving forward. After the United States scored 10 goals against Germany, the Canadians may want more in the future.

Related: Guide to the 2025 World Junior Championship

This doesn’t mean Canada didn’t have their moments of excellence, though. The sequence that saw 17-year-old Gavin McKenna record the opening tally of the game was a promising one. A passing lane opened up after a good sequence in the offensive zone—draft-eligible Matthew Schaefer took advantage and McKenna did the rest.

17 year old Gavin Mckenna gets the crowd going!🇨🇦💥 #WorldJuniors #FINCAN @hockeycanada pic.twitter.com/m9wo1CvTlw

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) December 27, 2024

Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan capitalized off of a Finnish turnover and put the puck in the back of their net. To put the game out of reach late in the third period, Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Luca Pinelli struck off a feed from the Seattle Kraken’s Caden Price to make it 3-0. A long-range empty-net tally from Schaefer sealed it, 4-0.

It’s silly to get worked up over a game that saw Canada put Finland through the wringer for 60 minutes. But with so many lengthy possessions in the offensive zone, more have to result in goals. Even though they won by four, the team wasn’t particularly brilliant in that regard. When these contests become do-or-die in January, those extended periods of control will dwindle. It’s important to strike when you have the chance.

This also gets to the point of Canada’s power play. It didn’t do poorly, but lacked the snarl necessary to blow the game open—they went 0-for-3. The second unit looked better than the first by the eye test, so that may be something to build on.

Canada’s Defencemen Will Make or Break the WJC

Sometimes, the best defence is a good offence—Canada’s defenders exemplified that to a tee. Everyone did their part to keep the puck in the offensive zone, whether it was pinching or making beautiful passes like the ones Schaefer and Price did to allow the team’s forwards to blossom.

Canada’s defencemen were very impressive. They spent little time in their zone and were noticeably clean with their exits, enabling a smooth transition back into Finland’s end. They also prevented high-danger shots until the last couple of minutes when the Finns went for broke and emptied their net.

Just in general, the value of defencemen is underrated in best-on-best hockey. Though it wasn’t the case in this one, there tends to be a lot of back-and-forth in these high-stakes games. Canada needs its defenders to constantly be making the right plays to first exit their zone and then get the puck up the ice for a chance the other way. The more the puck is in your zone, the higher the likelihood of mistakes—it’s the job of the blue-liners to smoothly get it out. Not only did they do this, they brought some offensive firepower to boot.

Carter George Made a Statement

Selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the second round of the 2024 NHL Draft, Carter George was tasked with a big game to open the tournament. He didn’t face a ton of quality rubber, but he was poised between the pipes and ready for everything that came his way. He stopped all 31 of Finland’s shots.

George’s standout performance should give Canada some confidence moving forward. There’s a very real chance this squad will be in a nail-biter of a game with the tournament on the line. When that happens, your goaltender has to be stellar—anything short could cost you everything, even if you’ve been the better team throughout the game.

Considering Canada’s lack of finishing ability until very late, perhaps there was a world where this one didn’t go in their favor or was tighter than it ended up being. George’s calmness in the net will be crucial if they want to go far this winter. Goals will be tough to come by sometimes, so goaltending has to be there to pick up the slack. George understood the assignment, especially in the last two minutes when Finland had an empty net—that’s when he truly shined, maintaining his shutout despite being peppered with scoring chances. His positioning was flawless all night.

Next up, Canada will take on Latvia at Canadian Tire Centre at 7:30 p.m. EST on Dec. 27. It’ll be Latvia’s opening contest of the 2025 WJC.

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