Cole Eiserman’s struggles continue, and Victor Eklund excels as the NY Islanders' prospects face off

It was perhaps the most anticipated game of the group stage at the 2026 World Junior Championship, as the two top teams in Group A faced off with the winner claiming the top spot in the group.

With three NY Islanders prospects taking the ice, Cole Eiserman and Kamil Bednarik for the USA, and Victor Eklund for the Swedes, it was an opportunity for Islanders fans to take in some of the organization's players of the future.

With the Swedes up 3-0 in the second period, Eiserman recorded his first assist of the WJC, putting a loose puck off the Swedish netminder before Chase Reid hammered it home to cut the lead to two. 

Soon after, with momentum shifting in the Americans' favor, Eiserman turned the puck over with a behind-the-back pass near the blue line, leading directly to a short-handed goal the other way. 

Eiserman has had a tough go of it all tournament as his struggles continued. He’d finish -3 on the night, recording only 9:47 of ice-time.

Bednarik was used sparingly as the Americans 13th forward, logging just 3:51.

Eklund, on the other hand, continues to impress. Leading all Swedish forwards in ice-time with 21:00, Eklund has excelled in all three zones. He earned the secondary assist on a two-man advantage for the Swedes in the third period to extend the lead once again, all but sealing the game as Sweden went on to win 6-3.

Winning the group, Sweden’s next opponent will be Latvia on Jan. 2. The Americans will face a much tougher road to the finals, taking on Finland in the quarter finals - a rematch of last year's Gold Medal match.