WJC 2021: Three mouthwatering matchups to watch in Gold Medal Showdown
There’s three compelling matchups to keep an eye on as Team USA battle Team Canada for Gold tonight.
It is Championship day at the 2021 World Junior Championship in Red Deer, Edmonton, and Team Canada and Team USA will be slugging it out for the Gold Medal and ultimate bragging rights.
Both teams are true juggernauts and dominated the tournament, so tonight’s game should be a mouthwatering preview.
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It has a lot of history too given that Team USA has won three of its four previous meetings with Team Canada in Gold Medal games, including the last Gold Medal-meeting between the two giants back in 2017.
Team USA has now medalled in five of the last six years at the IIHF World Championship, while Team Canada will be looking to defend their crown after winning Gold in 2020.
All the ingredients are there for what should be a tantalizing night of hockey, and we’ve broken it all down by looking at the three matchups that could prove critical to tonight’s game.
Let’s delve right in…
3. Devon Levi Vs. Spencer Knight
Goaltending is huge in any game and in any tournament, but it takes on extra importance when the Gold Medal is on the line.
As such, both Team Canada and Team USA will need elite goaltending and they should get it given that they have set the gold-standard in that department at the 2021 World Juniors so far.
Devon Levi has been a standout performer for Team Canada and he’s been the best goalie in the tournament, keeping three shutouts, including two in his last two games, and allowing just three goals.
He is a perfect picture of coolness between the pipes and turned away all 28 shots by Russia in Canada’s dominant Semi-Final victory, and the Florida Panthers prospect boasts an impressive 0.53 Goals Against Average.
Then there is Spencer Knight who has been just as stellar for Team USA, keeping two shutouts with a .921 Save Percentage and a 1.98 Goals Against Average.
Knight has allowed more goals than Levi (9), although four of them came in the Christmas Day loss to Russia and the Florida Panthers stud has been considerably improved since then.
He pitched back-to-back shutouts in the final two games of Group B for Team USA, and he’ll need to be at his best if his country is to get the better of a powerhouse Canada team.
Basically, whichever goalie performs at the peak of their powers tonight will be the one celebrating Gold at the end of the tournament, so it will be up to Devon Levi and Spencer Knight to ensure that they are unstoppable.
2. Cam York Vs. Bowen Byram
We’ve gone with obvious choices here but, let’s face it, you need your biggest stars to turn up in the biggest situations and Team Canada and Team USA will need their two biggest studs on the backend to deliver in the championship game.
The good news is that both Cam York and Bowen Byram has delivered for Team USA and Team Canada respectively, at the 2021 WJC so far, with York second among all defensemen in points with six (1 G, 5 A) in six games.
York has been a juggernaut for Team USA both at 5-on-5 and on the power play, performing a key role in the United States’ absolute dominance on the man advantage where they are 9-for-21 (42.86%), which is good for best in the tournament.
Gold Medal games are normally incredibly competitive and comes down to the fine margins, so Team USA will need York to be on top of his game again, especially on the power play, with Special Teams likely to play a huge role in tonight’s Gold Medal game.
Team USA will also need York to be responsible in his own zone given the plethora of lethal weapons at Canada’s disposal, including the red-hot Dylan Cozens, Quinton Byfield and Peyton Krebs to mention just a few.
Meanwhile, Bowen Byram has just been a beast for Team Canada all tournament long with five points (1 G, 4 A) in six games, while he leads all players in plus / minus with +14.
Byram just does everything well and the Colorado Avalanche prospect really is something special, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him unleashed on the NHL fully in 2020-21.
But, for now, Byram’s focus will be on helping Team Canada win Gold for the second consecutive year and he will be relied upon in all situations, from shutting down the likes of Trevor Zegras to joining the rush and making big plays at both ends of the ice.
1. Peyton Krebs Vs. Matthew Boldy
Now, you may be wondering why we haven’t gone with Trevor Zegras and Dylan Cozens who both lead the entire 2021 WJC with 16 points each.
Good question. But, please hear us out.
It all comes down to this in the Gold Medal game with nothing left to worry about after, so both teams will be devising their best game plans and both teams will be focussed on shutting down their opponent’s best players.
As a result, both Cozens and Zegras will probably have a much tougher job to find open ice in tonight’s championship game, thus leaving the door open for other players to step up and become a hero, as Akil Thomas did for Team Canada last year.
And this is where it gets interesting.
Because, it is fair to state that both teams are absolutely loaded and stacked with both rosters boasting an abundance of riches in all areas of the ice.
Both teams have had valuable contributions from up and down the lineup, and that’s why Peyton Krebs and Matthew Boldy will be huge for Team Canada and Team USA respectively tonight.
Krebs, who was taken with the No. 17 overall pick by the Vegas Golden Knights at the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, has been enjoying a coming-out party at this tournament with eight points (3 G, 5 A) in six games, providing a real added offensive punch for Team Canada.
You can say the same about Minnesota Wild prospect Matthew Boldy, who has emerged as a real rising star for Team USA in Edmonton.
Through six games Boldy has seven points (5 G, 2 A) and he’s been lights out, beating goaltenders with sublime skill and bringing a boatload of creativity to the table for Team USA.
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And, on a night where depth and role players could play a starring role in what could be an offensive explosion, players in the ilk of Matthew Boldy and Peyton Krebs could be huge for their teams.
Let the battles commence!