Team Ukraine U18 Finishes Second at the 2025 Junior World Hockey Championship, Division IA: What It Means
Oleksandr Bobkin's squad narrowly beat Team Kazakhstan.
Ukraine's U18 national hockey team finished second at the Junior World Hockey Championship, Division IA. This came as a result of the final match against Team Kazakhstan, held April 26.
Over the course of the world championship, Oleksandr Bobkin's squad won convincingly against Hungary (1:7), Austria (6:3), and Slovenia (7:1), but lost to Denmark (1:5).
For the Ukrainians to advance to the 'elite' division, the team needed to finish first in the group, which required Denmark to lose to both Hungary and Slovenia in the final two rounds.
In that scenario, Team Ukraine could have moved up to the higher division, but that didn't happen — Denmark beat both opponents, so in the final match, Ukraine was only competing against Kazakhstan for second place in the division.
Kazakhstan U18 — Ukraine U18 at the Junior World Hockey Championship 2025: Match Recap
- The Ukrainians opened the scoring in the first minute of the match — forward Andrii Vystavkin found the net against the opposing team. Team Kazakhstan only managed to respond in the middle of the second period, when Alisher Sarkenov equalized on the power play.
- The tie didn't last long: Ukrainian defenseman Mykola Kosariev put the national team back in front, and Artem Ratushniak scored what would be Ukraine's final goal in the 15th minute of the second period.
- Although Kazakhstan forward Alikhan Bakit narrowed Ukraine's lead to a single goal in the third period, the Kazakhs couldn't find the net again. As a result, with a score of 2:3, Oleksandr Bobkin's squad won their fifth match at the Junior World Hockey Championship 2025.
2025 Junior World Hockey Championship (Division IA). Round 5
Kazakhstan — Ukraine 2:3 (0:1, 2:2, 0:0)
Goals: Sarkenov, 29:37, Bakit, 36:48 — Vystavkin, 00:48, Kosariev, 33:26, Ratushniak, 34:42
2025 U18 World Hockey Championship Division IA Standings
- Denmark — 15 points (5 matches), 24:10 (goal difference)
- Ukraine — 12 (5), 24:12
- Kazakhstan — 7 (5), 14:13
- Slovenia — 5 (5), 8:17
- Hungary — 3 (5), 8:21
- Austria — 3 (5), 15:20
As a result, Team Ukraine couldn't advance to the 'elite' division, but held onto its spot in Division IA for the 2026 season, matching last year's result.