U18 Ice Hockey Championship: A hat-trick for a great Canadian hope

Posted On: April 26, 2023

Matthew Wood is already one of Canada’s top contenders heading into the upcoming National Hockey League (NHL) draft, but his performances at the U18 World Championship could see him move up a few spots.

The striker scored a hat-trick in a convincing 8-3 win over the Czech Republic in Porrentruy, Switzerland on Tuesday. It was the maple leaves’ last match in the preliminary round. Canada finished second in Group A behind Sweden.

Wood took matters into his own hands against a tough opponent. He scored three consecutive goals for his side between the end of the first period and the middle of the second period. Ranked the fourth best player in North America by NHL Central Scouting, the University of Connecticut product has scored five goals in four games since the tournament began.

“I think our entire line (with Macklin Celebrini and Calum Ritchie) had a great game tonight. We moved the puck well and our trio enjoy chaining presences further. Seeing the puck go in the net gives not only me but the whole team a lot of confidence going into the quarterfinals,” Wood said in a release.

On the Czech side, one had to watch out for Eduard Sale, a forward many see in the top 10 in the repechage. The left wing prevailed against goalkeeper Carson Bjarnason in the second period.

Colby Barlow, Ty Halaburda, Porter Martone, Nick Lardis and Lukas Dragicevic also shook the ropes for the Canadians.

A duel against the hosts

The Maple Leaf representatives will play their quarter-final game against host country Switzerland on Thursday. The Helvetii finished third in Group B after being beaten primarily by the United States 10-0 earlier in the day.

“We are aware that the crowd will be loud during our duel against Switzerland. We’ve earned our second place in the table, we’ve got the duel that deserves it, it’s up to us now to keep preparing well,” said head coach Jeff Truitt.

In Basel, the Finns made short work of the Norwegians, beating them 10-2 to meet the Slovaks in the quarter. Kasper Halttunen and Aron Kiviharju led the winners with four points each.

So it’s Norway and Germany who will cross swords twice to avoid relegation to Division 1 Group A.