# 2018 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships

The 2018 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship was the 42nd edition of the Ice Hockey World Junior Championship, and was hosted by the city of Buffalo, New York at KeyBank Center and HarborCenter. It opened on December 26, 2017 and closed with the gold medal game on January 5, 2018. It was the sixth time that the United States has hosted the WJIHC, and the second time that Buffalo has done so, previously hosting in 2011.
A preliminary round game between Canada and the United States was played outdoors at New Era Field in nearby Orchard Park, New York on December 29, 2017. It was the second outdoor game held at any top-level IIHF world championship, the first being the opening game of the 2010 IIHF World Championship, and the first one held at a junior level.

## Top Division
### Venues

| BuffaloOrchard Park | Buffalo | Buffalo | Orchard Park |
| BuffaloOrchard Park | KeyBank Center Capacity: 19,070 | KeyBank Rink at HarborCenter Capacity: 1,800 | New Era Field Capacity: 71,870 |

### Host selection

On July 28, 2015, USA Hockey named the five initial finalists for hosting the event:
* Buffalo, New York
* Pittsburgh
* St. Louis
* Chicago
* Tampa, Florida
Chicago and Tampa were eliminated on September 15. Buffalo was chosen as the host site on December 3, with a formal announcement on December 4.

### Match officials

The following officials were assigned by the International Ice Hockey Federation to officiate the 2018 World Junior Championship.
Referees
* Andris Ansons
* Alexandre Garon
* Jacob Grumsen
* Mikko Kaukokari
* Artur Kulev
* Manuel Nikolic
* Gordon Schukies
* Robin Šír
* Mikael Sjöqvist
* Stephen Thomson
* Jeremy Tufts
* Marc Wiegand
Linesmen
* Franco Castelli
* Markus Hägerström
* William Hancock II
* Rene Jensen
* Jon Kilian
* Dustin McCrank
* Jiří Ondráček
* Peter Šefčík
* Alexander Sysuev
* Emil Yletyinen

### Format

The preliminary round was a two group of five teams each internal round-robin format, followed by a three-round playoff. In the round-robin, two points were allotted for a win, and one additional point for a regulation win. One point was allotted for an overtime or game winning shots loss.
The four highest-ranked teams from each group of the preliminary round advanced to quarterfinals while the last-placed team from each group played a best-of-three series, the loser relegated to Division IA for 2019. All other teams will retain their Top Division status.

### Preliminary round

All times are local. (Eastern Standard Time – UTC-5)

#### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Canada | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 6 | +15 | 10 | Quarterfinals |
| 2 | United States | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 10 | +10 | 8 | Quarterfinals |
| 3 | Finland | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 12 | +3 | 6 | Quarterfinals |
| 4 | Slovakia | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 14 | −4 | 6 | Quarterfinals |
| 5 | Denmark | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 26 | −24 | 0 | Relegation round |

#### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Sweden | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 7 | +13 | 11 | Quarterfinals |
| 2 | Czech Republic | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 15 | +3 | 9 | Quarterfinals |
| 3 | Russia | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 13 | +4 | 7 | Quarterfinals |
| 4 | Switzerland | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 20 | −10 | 3 | Quarterfinals |
| 5 | Belarus | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 20 | −10 | 0 | Relegation round |

### Relegation round

Note: Belarus was relegated to the 2019 Division I A

### Playoff round
#### Bracket

| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| 1B | Sweden | 3 | | | | | | |
| 4A | Slovakia | 2 | | | | | | |
| 4A | Slovakia | 2 | 1B | Sweden | 4 | | | |
| | | | 2A | United States | 2 | | | |
| 2A | United States | 4 | 2A | United States | 2 | | | |
| 3B | Russia | 2 | | | | | | |
| 3B | Russia | 2 | | | | 1B | Sweden | 1 |
| | | | | | | 1A | Canada | 3 |
| 1A | Canada | 8 | | | | | | | 1A | Canada | 3 |
| 4B | Switzerland | 2 | | | |
| 4B | Switzerland | 2 | 1A | Canada | 7 | Third place | Third place | Third place |
| | | | 2B | Czech Republic | 2 |
| 2B | Czech Republic (GWS) | 4 | 2B | Czech Republic | 2 | 2B | Czech Republic | 3 |
| 3A | Finland | 3 | | | | 2A | United States | 9 |

#### Final
### Statistics
#### Scoring leaders

| Pos | Player | Country | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| 1 | Casey Mittelstadt | United States | 7 | 4 | 7 | 11 | +8 | 2 |
| 2 | Martin Nečas | Czech Republic | 7 | 3 | 8 | 11 | −5 | 0 |
| 3 | Kieffer Bellows | United States | 7 | 9 | 1 | 10 | +2 | 4 |
| 4 | Jordan Kyrou | Canada | 7 | 3 | 7 | 10 | +2 | 0 |
| 5 | Sam Steel | Canada | 7 | 4 | 5 | 9 | +3 | 0 |
| 6 | Brady Tkachuk | United States | 7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | +6 | 2 |
| 7 | Filip Zadina | Czech Republic | 7 | 7 | 1 | 8 | -4 | 2 |
| 8 | Klim Kostin | Russia | 5 | 5 | 3 | 8 | +7 | 2 |
| 9 | Cale Makar | Canada | 7 | 3 | 5 | 8 | +5 | 0 |
| 10 | Maxim Sushko | Belarus | 6 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −1 | 4 |
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus–minus; PIM = Penalties in minutes Source: IIHF

#### Goaltending leaders

(minimum 40% team's total ice time)
| Pos | Player | Country | TOI | GA | GAA | Sv% | SO |
| 1 | Carter Hart | Canada | 365:00 | 11 | 1.81 | 92.95 | 1 |
| 2 | Roman Durný | Slovakia | 240:00 | 11 | 2.75 | 92.86 | 0 |
| 3 | Filip Gustavsson | Sweden | 364:36 | 11 | 1.81 | 92.41 | 0 |
| 4 | Vladislav Sukhachyov | Russia | 262:30 | 12 | 2.74 | 90.40 | 0 |
| 5 | Philip Wüthrich | Switzerland | 207:22 | 17 | 4.92 | 88.74 | 0 |
TOI = Time On Ice (minutes:seconds); GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; Sv% = Save percentage; SO = Shutouts Source: IIHF

### Tournament awards

Most Valuable Player
Casey Mittelstadt
All-star team
* Goaltender: Filip Gustavsson
* Defencemen: Rasmus Dahlin, Cale Makar
* Forwards: Casey Mittelstadt, Filip Zadina, Kieffer Bellows
IIHF best player awards
* Goaltender: Filip Gustavsson
* Defenceman: Rasmus Dahlin
* Forward: Casey Mittelstadt

### Final standings

| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Final result |
| 1 | A | Canada | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 11 | +28 | 19 | Champions |
| 2 | B | Sweden | 7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 14 | +14 | 17 | Runners-up |
| 3 | A | United States (H) | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 35 | 19 | +16 | 14 | Third place |
| 4 | B | Czech Republic | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 27 | 34 | −7 | 11 | Fourth place |
| 5 | B | Russia | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 17 | +2 | 7 | Eliminated in Quarter-finals |
| 6 | A | Finland | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 16 | +2 | 7 | Eliminated in Quarter-finals |
| 7 | A | Slovakia | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 17 | −5 | 6 | Eliminated in Quarter-finals |
| 8 | B | Switzerland | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 28 | −16 | 3 | Eliminated in Quarter-finals |
| 9 | A | Denmark | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 32 | −22 | 5 | Advanced in Relegation round |
| 10 | B | Belarus | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 16 | 28 | −12 | 1 | Relegated to the 2019 Division I A |

## Division I
### Division I A

The Division I A tournament was played in Courchevel and Méribel, France, from December 10 to 16, 2017.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Kazakhstan | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 10 | +10 | 13 | Promoted to the 2019 Top Division |
| 2 | Latvia | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 5 | +8 | 12 | |
| 3 | Germany | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 7 | +10 | 10 | |
| 4 | France (H) | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 15 | −4 | 6 | |
| 5 | Austria | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 20 | −10 | 3 | |
| 6 | Hungary | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 25 | −14 | 1 | Relegated to the 2019 Division I B |

### Division I B

The Division I B tournament was played in Bled, Slovenia, from December 9 to 15, 2017.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Norway | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 5 | +13 | 13 | Promoted to the 2019 Division I A |
| 2 | Poland | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 14 | +9 | 12 | |
| 3 | Slovenia (H) | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 15 | +3 | 10 | |
| 4 | Ukraine | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 11 | −2 | 6 | |
| 5 | Italy | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 23 | −14 | 2 | |
| 6 | Lithuania | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 16 | −9 | 2 | Relegated to the 2019 Division II A |
* 1 2 Italy defeated Lithuania 2–1

## Division II
### Division II A

The Division II A tournament was played in Dumfries, United Kingdom, from December 10 to 16, 2017.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Japan | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 7 | +16 | 14 | Promoted to the 2019 Division I B |
| 2 | South Korea | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 19 | +2 | 10 | |
| 3 | Great Britain (H) | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 15 | +8 | 10 | |
| 4 | Estonia | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 20 | 25 | −5 | 4 | |
| 5 | Romania | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 20 | −3 | 4 | |
| 6 | Netherlands | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 13 | 31 | −18 | 3 | Relegated to the 2019 Division II B |
* 1 2 South Korea defeated Great Britain 5–4
* 1 2 Estonia defeated Romania 8–4

### Division II B

The Division II B tournament was played in Belgrade, Serbia, from January 10 to 16, 2018.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Spain | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 8 | +18 | 14 | Promoted to the 2019 Division II A |
| 2 | Serbia (H) | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 12 | +10 | 13 | |
| 3 | Croatia | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 11 | +5 | 9 | |
| 4 | Belgium | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 22 | 28 | −6 | 3 | |
| 5 | Mexico | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 22 | −10 | 3 | |
| 6 | Turkey | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 13 | 30 | −17 | 3 | Relegated to the 2019 Division III |
* 1 2 3 Belgium 3 Pts, +4 GD; Mexico 3 Pts, –1 GD; Turkey 3 Pts, –3 GD

## Division III
### Main tournament

The Division III main tournament was played in Sofia, Bulgaria, from January 22 to 28, 2018.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion |
| 1 | Israel | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 11 | +14 | 15 | Promoted to the 2019 Division II B |
| 2 | China | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 30 | 12 | +18 | 9 | |
| 3 | Bulgaria (H) | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 22 | 24 | −2 | 9 | |
| 4 | Iceland | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 20 | 15 | +5 | 7 | |
| 5 | Australia | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 18 | 24 | −6 | 5 | |
| 6 | New Zealand | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 40 | −29 | 0 | |

### Qualification

The Division III qualification tournament was played in Cape Town, South Africa, from February 5 to 7, 2018.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion |
| 1 | South Africa (H) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 6 | Promoted to the 2019 Division III |
| 2 | Chinese Taipei | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 0 | Promoted to the 2019 Division III |