Cole Reschny and what we learned on Day 8 of the U18 Worlds

Cole Reschny grew up with some stiff competition.

His two brothers.

Reschny’s brothers, who have also played hockey for their entire lives, feels his brothers have been a massive impact on his life and career.

“It’s been huge,” said Reschny, no. 25 in FCHockey’s Spring ranking for the 2025 NHL Draft. “Growing up, I wanted to be like my older brother all the time. [Austin] was in hockey and I was just watching him. Then I wanted to go to the rink, I wanted to skate, I wanted to be just like him. It’s been huge. We worked for hours together, we trained together, we messed around together, we shot pucks around together. They’ve been a huge impact in my life and hockey career, and I’m very grateful for it.

“It’s been nothing but good things with them.”

Of course, there’s brotherly competition.

Sibling rivalry is a real thing, after all.

“My older brother was better at the start and then we kind of went at it,” Reschny said. “We had a few battles and stuff, but it’s fun. My little brother is going to be good too. It’s great to have two brothers that play hockey and love it too.”

While his family is always on his mind, Reschny’s focus is on Canada.

Reschny, who had 92 points (26 goals, 66 assists) in 62 games with Victoria in the Western Hockey League in 2024-25, is eyeing a golden finish to his draft year at the 2025 IIHF World Under-18 Championship.

“It’s huge,” said Reschny, who joined the tournament late but has seven points (five goals, two assists) in four games. “It’s everything. I came here, everyone else came here with one goal in mind. That’s the gold medal,” he said. “We’ve got that chance tomorrow, so we’re going to embrace it and we are going to do whatever we can to win that.”

Top Performances

Canada is off to the gold-medal game after a convincing 4-0 win against Slovakia. The win was powered with the help of Keaton Verhoeff. He played a very steady game for the full 60 minutes, displaying strong instincts on the offensive and defensive ends. He helped dictate the pace of play from the blue line, especially on the power play. His ability to impact the game in all three zones was a major reason why Canada got the win past a pesky Slovakian group. Verhoeff finished with two assists in 24:51 of ice time.

Jakob Ihs Wozniak was held off the scoresheet, but his efforts still helped Sweden get past Team USA with his smart and detailed game. He sets himself up in strong scoring positions consistently. He was constantly a threat on the ice, with his heavy shot and accuracy. Just a strong presence every single time he stepped on the ice for his team.

Love Harenstam also deserves love for his stellar performance for Sweden. If not for his stout play in net, the USA could have prevailed, but he stopped 38 of 41 shots — including 13 of 14 in the final frame. Sweden was outshot 14-4 in that final period of play, and he stood on his head to launch his side into a gold-medal battle against Canada.

Quotables

“On and off the ice, he’s a role model and everyone wants to follow him on the ice. Everyone knows how he plays, he’s a great player. But off the ice, he’s a good person too. It’s really nice to be with him.” — Xavier Villeneuve on playing with Reschny

Scouting report

“Lasse Boelius really impressed me as a smooth-skating, mobile defenseman who stood out on a relatively weak Finnish team. His poise and puck control are exceptional, and he plays with a level of confidence that’s hard to miss. What stood out most to me was his skating — so fluid and composed — which he combines with great deception and puck skills to consistently create offense. As a power-play quarterback, he uses feints, head fakes and smart movement to generate space for his teammates. I love how he shows where he wants the puck when receiving, making plays easier for those around him. He’s a strong passer with good decision-making, and his ability to execute clean breakouts is a major strength. While he does like to push up offensively, I found his defensive play to be solid; he battles in front of the net and puts real pressure on opponents in the cycle. I see him as a solid no. 4 or no. 5 defenseman with clear power-play upside, and I’d absolutely take him within the first two rounds of the 2025 draft.” — FCHockey crossover scout Jonathan Cottone

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