ESPOO, Finland –  The U.S. Under-18 Men's National Team will meet rival Canada here tonight in the gold-medal game of the 2024 IIHF Under-18 Men's World Championship. Opening faceoff is set for 6:00 p.m. local / 11:00 a.m. ET and the game can be seen live on NHL Network.

The two sides are both undefeated heading into the last game of the tournament. Team USA swept preliminary round play, topped Switzerland (4-0) in the quarterfinals and beat Slovakia (7-2) yesterday in semifinal action to advance. After sweeping Group B prelim play, Canada shut out Latvia, 4-0, in quarterfinals before hanging on to beat Sweden, 5-4, in last night's second semifinal contest. 

The U.S. has won 11 of its 16 appearances all-time in the gold-medal game, including last year in 2023, when it beat Sweden, 3-2 in overtime, to clinch the top spot on the podium. The U.S. has won back-to-back gold medals on five previous occasions, including a run of four consecutive golds from 2009-2012. The last time Team USA won back-to-back golds was in 2014 and 2015. 

Team USA and Canada have met just twice previously in the gold-medal game. The United States earned a 5-1 victory in 2005 before the Canadians answered in 2013, winning 3-2. The latest overall matchup between the two sides was in the preliminary round in 2022, an 8-3 win for the red, white and blue.