Anaheim Ducks World Juniors Recap

By Thomas Harrington

The Anaheim Ducks sent five prospects to World Juniors and two of them came home with medals. Forwards Lucas Pettersson and Eric Nilson won gold playing for Team Sweden. The other three prospects were defenseman Lasse Boelius playing for Team Finland, goaltender Elijah Neuenschwander playing for Team Switzerland, and defenseman Darels Uljanskis playing for Team Latvia.

Switzerland and Latvia both lost in the quarterfinals, sending Neuenschwander and Uljanskis home early, but Sweden and Finland faced off against each other in a semifinal matchup. Sweden won that matchup in a shootout. In the bronze medal game, Finland lost to Canada, while Sweden defeated Czechia to claim the gold.

Lucas Pettersson – Team Sweden

This was Pettersson’s first and only trip to the World Juniors, and it was a good one. He scored four goals and six points in six games, finishing tied for second on the team in goals and tied for seventh in goals in the tournament. He played on Sweden’s third line while also getting time on both the powerplay and penalty kill units. Pettersson had no points in his first game, but had two goals against Switzerland, including the gamewinner. He followed that up with an assist against Germany, but had his best game of the tournament against the United States. He scored two goals against the USA, including the gamewinner while Sweden was shorthanded. Pettersson also had numerous chances to record a hat trick but couldn’t quite finish it off. He recorded his final assist against Latvia.

Unfortunately, he missed the semifinals against Finland with an illness but was back in for the gold medal game. Pettersson played between 10 and 15 minutes in his six games of action. Overall, Pettersson probably had the best tournament of any Anaheim prospect. He won the gold and scored several key goals for his team. He’ll now head back to the SHL to continue playing for Brynas IF.

Eric Nilson – Team Sweden

This was Nilson’s first trip to the World Juniors and he scored a goal and three points in seven games. He started out centering Sweden’s top line between Victor Eklund and Anton Frondell, but was dropped back to the fourth line starting in Sweden’s fourth game. Nilson didn’t record any points in the first game of the tournament, but scored a goal and an assist against Switzerland in their second game. He recorded his final point, an assist, against the United States, in his first game on the fourth line. Nilson played well for Sweden, and was quite noticeable at times, but didn’t have as big an impact as Pettersson did.

While it was disappointing to see Nilson dropped down the lineup, he still played well in more limited action. He played about 15 minutes a night in his three games on the top line, and then saw his ice time decrease by quite a bit when he was moved to the fourth line. Nilson is eligible to return to the World Juniors next year where he’ll hopefully have a more consistent tournament. For now he’s heading back to Michigan State University in the NCAA.

Lasse Boelius – Team Finland

This was Boelius’ first trip to the World Juniors. In seven games, he scored two goals and seven points, recording more goals and points than he has in 30 games in the Liiga this season, and he had the most points by an Anaheim prospect in the tournament. Boelius finished third on Finland in points and led their defense in scoring, while finishing tied for third in scoring by a defenseman in the tournament. He started out with a two-assist performance against Denmark, and followed that up with a goal and assist against Latvia. Boelius’ second goal of the tournament came against Canada, and he also picked up an assist against the United States. He was scoreless against Sweden in the semifinals but did have three shots on goal.

In the final game against Canada, Boelius picked up an assist. He played between 16 and 18 minutes in most games, dropping below the 16 minute mark only once. Overall, it was a strong tournament for Boelius. He used his size effectively, but did make some bad pinches. He’s eligible to play for Finland again at next year’s tournament, and hopefully he’ll be even better. For now, Boelus will return to Assat in the Liiga.

Elijah Neuenschwander – Team Switzerland

This was Neuenschwander’s second trip to the World Juniors and he was Switzerland’s backup. Overall, Switzerland went 2-3 in the tournament. Neuenschwander played in two games with a 1-1 record, a 2.51 goals against average, and a .902 save percentage. He got the start against Sweden in Switzerland’s second game of the tournament. Sweden won the game 4-2, but despite the loss, Neuenschwander played well. He was beaten by Nilson on the game’s first shot, but didn’t let in a goal again until the third period. Overall, he faced 29 shots and made 26 saves.

Neuenschwander was then given the start in Switzerland’s fourth game of the tournament. He faced off against Slovakia and picked up a 3-2 win. Neuenschwander didn’t allow any goals through the first two periods, and stopped 20 of 22 shots. Despite playing in only two games, I liked what I saw from Neuenschwander. He made a number of difficult saves and played well against two strong opponents. His best game was definitely the one he lost against Sweden. This was Neuenschwander’s final trip to the World Juniors. Now he’s heading back to the SL where he’s playing for EHC Chur.

Darels Uljanskis – Team Latvia

This was Uljanskis’ third trip to the World Juniors. Overall, Latvia went 1-3-1 in the tournament, with their only victory coming against Denmark. For the second year in a row, Latvia pushed Canada to overtime, but the Canadians picked up the win this time. Uljanskis played in four of Latvia’s five games and was scoreless. He was injured in their win against Denmark and missed their next game, where Latvia lost to Czechia.

In his three healthy games, Uljanskis played around 15 to 17 minutes in each game and played on both the powerplay and penalty kill. This wasn’t a great tournament for Uljanskis, but part of that can be attributed to his injury. This was his final trip to the World Juniors. Uljanskis will now return to the Flint Firebirds of the OHL.

Anytime two Anaheim prospects win gold it’s a good tournament. While it would have been nice to see others pick up medals as well, Boelius was really the only other one who had a chance, and Finland ran into a very good Canadian team in the bronze medal game. Overall, Anaheim’s prospects can be happy with how the tournament went. While it would have been nice to see Uljanskis and Latvia have more success, it also wasn’t a huge surprise to see them get only one win. Hopefully both Nilson and Boelius return to the World Juniors next year and play even better.

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January 7th, 2026