The 2022 World Juniors did not end as expected for the USA. After dominating their group in the preliminary round, the Czech Republic suffered a surprise loss in the quarter-finals to defeat the 2021 champions.
The United States’ journey back to the podium begins today as the team opens the 2023 World Juniors against Latvia.
Once again, the Americans are expected to be candidates for the gold medal. Luke Hughes and Logan Cooley are the two key returnees from the 2022 team. In the 2022 tournament, the United States each averaged one point per game, and both had six points in five games.
MORE: Watch 2023 World Juniors live with fuboTV (free trial, US only)
Cutter Gauthier, Jimmy Snuggerud and Lane Hutson are three newcomers who are expected to play big roles for the US. Gauthier and Snuggerud played on a dominant line with Cooley during their time with the U.S. U18 national team, and have been playing together again before the official start of the tournament. Hutson is expected to play second fiddle to Hughes as the driver of the offense.
Latvia is struggling to stay in the top World Juniors, but is coming off a top finish at the 2022 World Juniors. In the preliminary round, the country won for the first time in its history and upset the Czech Republic in the last game of the group.
The historic victory also allowed Latvia to advance out of the quarter-finals for the first time in its history. However, the team lost to Sweden and finished the tournament in seventh place.
This is the fourth time the USA has played Latvia at the World Juniors. The USA has won all three previous contests, outscoring Latvia 30-4 overall.
MORE: Team USA roster, 2023 World Juniors schedule
Sporting News will provide live updates and highlights from the USA vs. Latvia match at the 2023 World Juniors.
Account of USA and Latvia
| Match | P1 | P2 | P3 | THE FIRE | F |
| the usa | — | — | — | — | — |
| Latvia | — | — | — | — | — |
USA vs Latvia live updates, 2023 World Juniors highlights
All Times (ET)
First season
16:30 — The first penalty of the game goes against the Americans as Gavin Brindley is called for a tackle.
16:27 — USA needs to control the puck better and win 1v1s. Latvia took advantage of the couple and almost got an A grade.
16:19 — Two big chances for the USA, both created by Jackson Blake, but Patriks Berzins saves both. Blake goes past the net on a drive in front, but Berzins doesn’t have a ton of room to get around. He then had a chance for another point on the side of the goal, but shot at Berzins.
16:15 — After five minutes, it was clear that Latvia’s game plan was to keep the USA out. The Americans have spent a lot of time in the perimeter offensive zone thus far.
16:11 — Latvia almost got on the board in the first minute. A really poor switch from Ryan Ufko behind the goal put Martins in front of Lavins, but his shot deflected wide.
16:10 — The puck drops and the USA’s 2023 World Youth tour begins.
Pregame
15:30 — Trey Augustine gets the nod from Kaidan Mbereko for the USA. Mbereko was the No. 1 starter at the 2022 World Juniors, but Rand Pecknold will go with the US Under-18 goalkeeper.
Trey Augustine got the nod for the USA, not Kaydan Mbereko, who started four games in the August tournament. Augustin is a draft-eligible goalie committed to Michigan State in 2023-24. 12-0-2, 2.10, .930 for the USNTDP U-18 team this season.
— John Rosen (@jonnyrosen) December 26, 2022
15:15 — This is how these two teams will line up for their opener. These are the same lineups and pairings from the two exhibition games they played for the USA.
16:30 EST for USA and Latvia.
Trey Augustin (2023) kicks off USA’s first goal against Latvia, unchanged from USA’s pre-tournament games. #WJC2023 #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/sYpu5HpOu9
— Brandon Holmes (@BHolmes_Hockey) December 26, 2022
What channel will USA and Latvia be on today?
- United states of america: NHL Network
- Canada: TSN 1
TSN has all the World Juniors action in Canada, while viewers in the United States can find the games on the NHL Network.
EJ Hradek provides entertainment coverage for NHL Network. He will be joined by analyst Dave Starman and reporter John Rosen.
Dennis Beyak and Craig Button will be calling the USA games for TSN. Laura Diacoon and Dave Reed will be in the studio.
How to stream World Juniors hockey games live
American fans can stream the tournament on fuboTV (comes with a free trial), NHL.tv or the NHL app.
Fans in Canada can stream all World Juniors games on TSN.ca or the TSN app.
USA and Latvia
- THE USA: -5.5 (-119)
- Latvia: +5.5 (-116)
- O/U: 7.5
According to Sports Interaction, the USA opened as a massive favorite over Latvia, with 5.5 points in favor of the Americans.
USA World Juniors schedule 2023
(All times Eastern)
| Date | Opponent | A result | Time (ET) | TV Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 26 | Latvia | — | 16:00 | TSN, NHLN |
| December 28 | Slovakia | — | 16:00 | TSN, NHLN |
| December 29 | Switzerland | — | 16:00 | TSN, NHLN |
| December 31 | Finland | — | 16:00 | TSN, NHLN |
| January 2 | TBD (Quarterfinals) | — | TBD | TSN, NHLN |
| January 4 | TBD (Semifinals) | — | TBD | TSN, NHLN |
| January 5 | TBD (Gold Medal Game) | — | TBD | TSN, NHLN |
