Quarterfinals set at world under-18s

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Two Saint John Sea Dogs forwards will play in the quarterfinals of the IIHF Under-18 World Championship in Switzerland.

Eriks Mateiko and Team Latvia will take on Sweden while Pavel Simek and Team Czechia will face the United States. The other quarterfinal matchups will feature Canada taking on Switzerland and Slovakia battling Finland.

All four quarters will take place Thursday. The semifinals are Saturday and the gold and bronze medal games will be played Sunday.

The Latvians finished 1-3-0 in the preliminary round, placing fourth in Group B. Mateiko, who is captaining Latvia, had a goal and an assist in four games.

"Eriks Mateiko‘s name has been one that has circulated in the media tribune over the past few days," writes Steven Ellis at Daily Faceoff. "The Saint John Sea Dogs winger grabbed his second point of the tournament and has been one of the few Latvians to really be putting in the effort every shift. He’s not eligible until the 2024 NHL Draft, but he’s been noticeable."

Simek had two shots in 10:51 of ice time in Czechia's 8-3 loss to Canada on Tuesday. Simek finished the preliminary round with two assists in four games.

Czechia finished fourth in Group A with a 1-2-1 record.

Team Canada, meanwhile, will have a second QMJHL player joining them. Moncton Wildcats defenseman Etienne Morin will join Victoriaville Tigres goaltender Gabriel D'Aigle as the only Q players on the squad.

Etienne Morin des #Wildcats va rejoindre l’équipe canadienne des
Moins de 18 ans pour remplacer Quinton Burns qui s’est blessé lors du dernier match.

Morin (72 pts en saison) ne sera pas en uniforme aujourd’hui mais sera dispo pour la ronde des médailles a partir de jeudi. #RDS

— Stephane Leroux (@StephRDSJunior) April 25, 2023