Czech Republic Edges Canada to Reach World Junior Final Against Sweden

The Czech Republic secured a thrilling 6-4 victory over Canada in the World Junior Ice Hockey Championship semifinal, advancing to the final to face Sweden. The encounter was tightly contested, with multiple lead changes and a dramatic finish. Canada equalized at 4-4 through Porter Martone with just three minutes remaining, but Tomas Poletin quickly retook the lead for the Czech Republic by scoring the decisive goal about a minute later. Vojtech Cihar sealed the win with an empty-net goal in the closing moments. Key contributor Max Curran, who plays in a Canadian junior league, scored one goal and assisted on two others, including the late winner, saying, "It will be the biggest match of our careers. Hopefully, we will win again then." The semifinal marked one of Canada’s rare misses for the final in recent years, with captain Porter Martone expressing the team's disappointment, stating, "It feels like we have let our whole country down." The final against Sweden is scheduled for early Tuesday morning at 02:30, marking the first World Junior Championship final in a decade without Canada or the USA and the first-ever final matchup between Sweden and the Czech Republic. Sweden earned their final spot by defeating Finland earlier in the semifinals. Canada will face Finland for the bronze medal later the same evening.