EP Rinkside's 3 Stars from the 2024 U18 World Hockey Championship semifinals

ESPOO, Finland – Semifinal Saturday at the 2024 U18 World Hockey Championships kicked off with Team USA facing off against an upstart Slovak squad that wasn't supposed to be here.

While the outcome was never going to be in doubt, there remained plenty of potential storylines. The projected top selection in the 2025 draft, and tournament's leading scorer, James Hagens, came into the match with 19 points in five games. He was just two away from tying Nikita Kucherov’s long-standing record for the most in a single event.

Hagens reiterated that he wasn’t worried about individual records and that bringing home a gold medal was all that mattered. “We’re just trying to win a gold medal. It doesn’t matter what record you break; if you leave without a gold medal, it’s not memorable. Can’t have one gu