"After six days worth of preliminary round action at the 2026 World Juniors, we have reached the next stage of the tournament. This second phase of the tournament will feature the knockout round - consisting of a quarterfinal round, a semifinal round, a gold-medal game, and a bronze medal game - in addition to a relegation round between the fifth-place teams in each group. All of the knockout rounds, in addition to the relegation round, are of a single-elimination format."
"Unlike past tournament game days, the action on January 2nd will feature five games, including a relegation round game and all four quarterfinal games. The relegation round game, which features Denmark and Germany, will get underway at the 3M Arena at 11:30 AM CST. This will be followed by the first of four quarterfinal games, which will be a rematch of last year's quarterfinal game between Sweden and Latvia."
"The third game of the day will feature two tournament dark horses/underdogs in the form of Switzerland and Czechia. Those two teams will play at the 3M Arena with a 3:30 PM CST puck drop. The last two games of the day will feature tournament heavyweights. The first of these games will see the United States and Finland do battle at the Grand Casino Arena, with puck drop set for 5:00 PM CST."
After six days of preliminary play, the tournament advances to a single-elimination stage including quarterfinals, semifinals, and medal games, plus a relegation match between fifth-place group teams. January 2 features five games: Denmark vs Germany in relegation at 3M Arena (11:30 AM CST), Sweden vs Latvia quarterfinal (1:00 PM CST at 3M Arena), Switzerland vs Czechia quarterfinal (3:30 PM CST at 3M Arena), United States vs Finland quarterfinal (5:00 PM CST at Grand Casino Arena), and Canada vs Slovakia quarterfinal (7:30 PM CST at 3M Arena). The DenmarkâGermany matchup projects close offensive parity, with Denmark scoring slightly more against stronger opposition while Germany generates more chances but struggles converting them.
Read at Puck Prose
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