It’s been a sensational IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship in Slovakia with upsets and surprises at every turn. As we prepare for the decisive games on Friday and Saturday, here’s a look at some of the things we’ve seen for the first time – and a few firsts that might be waiting for us between now and Saturday night.

First time semi-finalist
Not many people gave Latvia a chance of a medal at this tournament, but the Baltic nation came with a belief that no team is unbeatable. And a 5-2 victory over the free-scoring Americans in the quarter-final proved the point. Latvia advances to the final four, already its best ever result in World U18s play, and the 8-1 victory over Norway represents its biggest win in this tournament. Now could go on to claim its first ever U18s medal.
 

First win over Canada
This tournament has been establishing landmarks from day one. Timothy Kazda’s penalty shot in the third period was enough to give Slovakia a 2-1 victory over defending champion Canada in the host nation’s opening game in Trencin. That was the country’s first win over the Canadians in U18 World Championship play, and set the tone for a tournament full of surprises.

First all-European medal round
Since the U18 Worlds adopted a playoff format in 2003, there has never been a year without Canada or the USA in the semi-finals. Until now. Wednesday’s quarter-finals saw the North American giants toppled. First, Nils Bartholdsson struck twice in the third period for Sweden to beat Canada 4-2. Then Latvia produced one of the all-time upsets, downing the Americans 5-2. You have to go back to 2001, when the tournament still used a group format, for the last time all the medals went to Europe.

First-time quarter-finalist
It wasn’t just a significant year for new medal contenders. Denmark made a successful return to the top division, winning through to the quarter-finals for the first time ever. A 4-1 opening day victory over Germany set the tone, and there was also a battling 0-2 loss against a powerful USA in Group B. Slovakia proved too much in the last eight, but this was a greatly encouraging tournament for a country that last survived among the elite way back in 2004.

First four-time survivor
Norway loves a survival showdown, it seems. The Scandinavians won the U18 relegation round for the fourth year in a row, dramatically defeating Germany thanks to two goals in the last 75 seconds. No other nation has been saved in a relegation round in four consecutive seasons; previously Slovakia (2008-2010) and Finland (2003-2005) survived three in a row, although both were in a relegation group format rather than the current two-team playoff.
 

Future firsts
A new champion?
Three of the four surviving teams have never won gold at Men’s U18 level. Sweden is the exception, taking the title in 2019 and 2022. Czechia has four medals, most recently a silver from 2014. Slovakia had two medals in the early years, but nothing since silver in 2003. Latvia has yet to win any medal at this event.

First Slovak top scorer?
With two games to go, Timothy Kazda leads the tournament scoring with 10 (6+4) points. If he stays on top, he would be the first Slovak to finish top scorer at the U18 World Championship. He would also be only the second player from outside a “big six” nation, following Konstantin Zakharov of Belarus in 2003. Czechia and Latvia have never had a top scorer here either, with Dominik Ripa (7 points) and Olivers Murnieks (6) still in the race. But Sweden’s Elton Hermansson, currently one point behind Kazda, will have plenty to say about the final outcome as he tries to follow last year’s scoring leader, compatriot Filip Ekberg.