The United States won the 2024 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Championship (WJC) on January 5, 2024, beating hosts Sweden 6-2 in the gold medal game of the 10-team tournament. Isaac Howard scored twice for Team USA, which was composed of many of the same players who lost to Sweden in the gold medal game at the U-18 World Championship in 2022. Gabe Perreault, Zeev Buium, Ryan Leonard, and captain Rutger McGroarty also scored for the Americans and goaltender Trey Augustine stopped 24 of 26 shots. Czechia defeated Finland 8-5 in a wild bronze medal game, scoring three goals in a span of 35 seconds during the final few minutes of the third period.
The IIHF WJC, held every year during the holiday season, features some of the best under-20 National Hockey League (NHL) prospects and undrafted players. Many players who have had great success at the tournament, including Pavel Bure, Peter Forsberg, and Eric Lindros went on to have great NHL careers. Below are the five leading scorers from the 2024 IIHF WJC.
Jiri Kulich (Czechia)
A 19-year-old center from Kadan, Czechia, Jiri Kulich tied for the tournament lead in scoring with 12 points (six goals, six assists) and was tied for third in goals. He scored a pair of goals and added two assists in the bronze medal game. Kulich, the team’s captain, was playing in his third WJC and was selected to the WJC All-Star Team. He recorded 10 points (eight goals, two assists) in 2023 and eight points (two goals, six assists) in 2022. He is 13th all-time in WJC scoring.
A first-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in the 2022 NHL Draft, Kulich began his professional career in 2022-23 with the Sabres’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate in Rochester and recorded 46 points (24 goals, 22 assists) in 62 games. He made his NHL debut with Buffalo on November 29, 2023 against the New Jersey Devils.
Cutter Gauthier (USA)
A 19-year-old forward with Boston College, Cutter Gauthier tied with Kulich for the tournament lead with 12 points (two goals, 10 assists). Gauthier, playing in his second WJC, had 10 points (four goals, six assists) in last year’s tournament and was part of the American team that lost to Sweden in the gold medal game at the U18 worlds. Coincidentally, he was actually born in Sweden as his dad, Sean, was there playing for Skelleftea in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
Gauthier, selected fifth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2022 NHL Draft, had 37 points in 32 games as a freshman at Boston College in 2022-23. Shortly after winning gold with the USA, he was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. According to Flyers general manager Daniel Briere, Gauthier had said he wasn’t willing to play in Philadelphia back in May 2023.
“We were hoping that at some point he would change his mind,” Briere said of Gauthier following the trade. “He had already changed his mind. He looked at us at the draft and told us he was built to be a Flyer, wanted to be a Flyer, and then a few maybe months later told us that he didn’t want to be a Flyer, didn’t want to play for the Flyers.”
Matyas Melovsky (Czechia)
Czechia center Matyas Melovsky finished third in tournament scoring with 11 points (1 goal, 10 assists). An undrafted player ranked No. 82 by Central Scouting among North American skaters for the 2024 NHL Draft, Melovsky is in his second season with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar of the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). He had 58 points in 59 games in 2022-23.
Jonathan Lekkerimaki (Sweden)
One of five players tied for fourth in tournament scoring with 10 points, Jonathan Lekkerimaki scored seven goals and had three assists in seven games with Sweden. A 5-foot-11, 172-pound right winger, Lekkerimaki also played last year, recording four points (one goal, three assists) in seven games. He’s playing with Örebro HK in 2023-24 and was drafted 15th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in 2022. The Hockey Writers listed him as the 25th-best NHL prospect on January 11, 2024.
Gavin Brindley (USA)
A 19-year-old forward from Florida, Gavin Brindley also had 10 points (six goals, four assists) in the 2024 IIHF WJC. Selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the second round, 34th overall, of the 2023 NHL Draft, Brindley is in his second season with the University of Michigan. He had 38 points in 41 games as a freshman in 2022-23.
Ondrej Becher (Czechia)
Like his Czechia teammate Melovsky, Ondrej Becher is an undrafted forward ranked among the top-90 North American players in the 2024 NHL Draft. The 19-year-old forward had three goals and seven assists in seven games for Czechia in his second WJC, although he played just one game in 2023. He’s in his second season with the Prince George Cougars in the Western Hockey League (WHL). He had 38 points (16 goals, 22 assists) in 63 games in 2022-23.