OTTAWA Teddy Stiga's breakaway goal in overtime secured the United States' second consecutive gold medal at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship on Sunday, as they defeated Finland 4-3 in a thrilling final at Canadian Tire Centre before 16,822 spectators.

Stiga, a Nashville Predators prospect, received an outlet pass from Zeev Buium of the Minnesota Wild at the offensive blue line. Stiga skated in, weaving around a Finnish defender before calmly slipping the puck under goalie Petteri Rimpinen, a 2025 NHL Draft eligible, for the golden goal https://www.iihfworldchampionship.com/collections/team-sweden-rasmus-andersson-jersey. Remarkably, it was Stiga's only shot of the entire tournament.

"They were kind of changing, and I saw their player slow down, so I skated by him. Zeev made a great saucer pass, and I almost lost it in the corner but managed to recover. I honestly dont remember the goal, I just shot the puck," Stiga said after the game.

Finland had put up a strong fight, but Stigas goal handed the U. S. their second consecutive World Juniors gold medal.

Meanwhile, Czechia triumphed over Sweden 4-2 to capture the bronze medal. Czechia coach Patrik Augusta had previously challenged his team to make history, as Czech defenseman Sale could now become the only player to win three consecutive medals at the U20 World Junior Championships.

"We told Sale before the game that he had the chance to be the only Czech player with three straight medals, and now, maybe, they should build him a statue," said Augusta.

In the bronze medal game, Sweden's David Edstrom, a Nashville Predators prospect, scored twice, while Carolina Hurricanes' Felix Unger Sorum assisted on two goals. Swedens goalkeeper Gidlof made 30 saves in the loss.

Sweden had come into the game as the silver medalists from the 2023 World Juniors and looked to repeat their success. However, Edstrom admitted that Sweden didnt bring the same energy they had in the group stages. "We didnt have the same intensity. In the group stage, we were playing with a lot more energy and everyone was moving. Tonight, we just didnt play as well," Edstrom said.

The game started with Czechia's Stancl opening the scoring on a power play at 3:47 of the first period. He received a pass from Adam Jecho of the St Matthew Tkachuk 4NF Jersey. Louis Blues, who made a seam pass to set up Stancls one-timer, which found the back of the net.

Edstrom quickly responded for Sweden, scoring on a power play at 12:31 of the first period. He tipped a shot from the blue line by Unger Sorum past Czechia's goalie Michal Hrabal and into the net, evening the score at 1-1.

Czechia regained the lead in the second period with a goal from Sale at 9:27. Miroslav Holinka, a Toronto Maple Leafs prospect, intercepted a Swedish pass in the offensive zone and set up Sale, who beat Gidlof with a backhand.

Edstrom answered again for Sweden at 15:40, tipping a pass from Unger Sorum into the net to tie the game 2-2.

Despite their efforts, Sweden couldnt find a way to take the lead, and Czechia eventually pulled ahead to claim the bronze.

deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman contributed to this report.

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