There was a stunning upset at the 2025 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Hockey Championships in Ottawa, Ontario on Friday. For only the third time ever, Latvia won a game at the World Junior Hockey Championships and they beat a Canadian program that has won the World Juniors 20 times.
One must realize that this Canadian National Junior Team on Friday night did not deserve a victory as they lost 3-2 in a shootout. They lacked discipline, intensity and overall skill. The quality of shots the Canadian team delivered in the shootout were poor indeed as Latvian goaltender Linards Feldbergs did not need to make a difficult save. Yes, Feldbergs made 55 saves on 57 shots, but many of Canada’s scoring chances were not grade A variety. When it came to discipline, the Canadians had 16 penalty minutes including a dumb too many men on the ice infraction in overtime. When it came to intensity, the Canadians seemed disinterested and had listened to the TSN panel prior to the contest, who said in unison that Latvia had no chance.
