2025 IIHF World Junior Championship: Canada vs. Germany Odds, Prediction

Jordan Ramsay
Last Updated: December 28, 2024

At the risk of sounding overly harsh, Canada’s 3-2 shootout loss to Latvia on Friday will go down as one of the biggest upsets in tournament history. The Canadians now face a winless German team that is coming off a 3-1 loss against Finland.

Canada is favoured to win by six goals on the World Junior odds, with the total set at 8.5. The Germans are +3300 underdogs on the moneyline.

2025 IIHF World Junior Championship Betting Odds

Canada is 17-0-0 all-time against Germany at the World Juniors, with 13 of those wins coming by at least three goals. Overall, the Canadians have outscored the Germans a combined 108-26.

It was a 6-3 decision last New Year’s Eve in Sweden. Oliver Bonk and Carson Rehkopf, who are both on this year’s team, each registered two assists. Bonk has registered one assist so far this year, while Rehkopf hasn’t drawn into the lineup.

Canada’s favoured method of victory over Germany on the World Junior specials board is to win by five or more goals at -275. My personal pick for the game is both teams to score at least two goals in regulation. Canada will be looking to flex their offensive muscles to soothe their bruised egos after the Latvian loss and Germany was able to pot four goals against a very strong American team in their tournament opener.

Team Canada

Canada’s loss against Latvia wasn’t just a massive upset, it will likely also prevent them from winning the group and earning a bye. After a scoreless first period, the Canadians only managed two goals the rest of the game before going 0-for-8 in the shootout. Jett Luchanko scored short-handed and Cal Ritchie notched one on the power play, while Jack Ivankovic stopped 24 of 26 shots in regulation and overtime and another seven of eight in the shootout.

Canada suffered a massive blow with top defenceman Matthew Schaefer set to miss the rest of the tournament after suffering a broken collarbone in the first period on Friday. Schaefer, who had a goal and an assist in Canada’s 4-0 win over Finland, is expected to be one of the top picks in the upcoming NHL draft. Sawyer Mynio was added to Canada’s roster after the Schaefer injury.

Team Germany

Clemens Sager scored Germany’s lone goal against Finland, while Linus Vieillard made 40 saves on 42 shots. Germany held on late, but an empty-net goal by Finland sealed the game with a little over one minute remaining. The Germans are now 0-2 after opening the tournament with a 10-4 loss against Team USA. Nico Pertuch was tagged for all 10 American goals after being peppered with 56 shots. Germany has been outshot 99-54 in their first two games of the tournament.

If you’re looking for a positive when it comes to Germany, you could point out that they have had five different goal scorers in two games. As mentioned, Sager scored against the Finns, while Julius Sumpf, David Lewandowski, Lenny Boos and Timo Ruckdaschel scored against the Americans.