The 2022 IIHF World Junior Championships certainly had a different vibe this time around. 

It was challenging to inspire the fans to tune in on TV and attend games in Edmonton for a variety of reasons. People had barbeques, beaches and summer activities competing for their attention. The event featured many future NHL stars but missed many others who opted to focus on training and preparing for big league camps that will kick off in just a few weeks. Due to the geopolitical nightmare happening in Ukraine, the IIHF rightly excluded Russia and Belarus. 

The round-robin portion of the event featured very few close matchups which ensured the excitement level remained muted and the ticket prices were sky-high, especially for games that featured Team Canada. 

But in the end, like any good showman, the tournament culminated in one of the most heart-pounding, gut-wrenching, and highlight-worthy ways imaginable. And for that, we thank the Hockey Gods. 

Now, all that’s left is the post-mortem. But instead of a rundown of the event you may or may have actually watched, let’s keep this (mostly) positive. What follows are the standouts from the event. A few are bad but mostly good.