Terrier Trio Set for World Junior Championship
December 25, 2023 | Men's Ice Hockey
Boston University men's ice hockey standouts Macklin Celebrini (Canada), Lane Hutson (United States) and Tom Willander (Sweden) will represent their respective countries at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, which begins on Tuesday in Gothenburg, Sweden.
BU is one of just two schools (Michigan State) to boast a player on three different countries at this year's tournament. Celebrini will be the first Terrier to take the ice on Tuesday when Canada faces Finland at 8:30 a.m. ET. Hutson and Team USA will then take on Norway at 11 a.m. ET before WIllander and the host nation battle Latvia at 1:30 p.m. ET. A full schedule for games featuring the three Terriers is below, with all matchups to be televised live on NHL Network.
Hutson, who won bronze with Team USA at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, is an alternate captain for the Americans. He shined in the United States' final pre-tournament game against Celebrini and Canada, scoring the overtime-winner and assisting on two other goals. Hutson finished last year's World Junior Championship with one goal and three assists for four points, including the primary assist on the overtime-winning goal in the bronze medal game. He also skated with the senior national team at the 2023 IIHF Men's World Championship in May, finishing the tournament as a plus-7 with six points on two goals and four assists.
A native of North Barrington, Illinois, Hutson has been fantastic in his sophomore season with the Terriers. The reigning Hockey East Defender of the Month entered the semester break as the top-scoring defenseman in Hockey East with 20 points on eight goals and 12 assists. No other blue liner in the country has scored more goals than Hutson, who ranks third nationally among defensemen in points. He has been held without a point on just three occasions and has recorded at least two points five different times, including his first collegiate hat trick against then-No. 3/4 North Dakota on Nov. 4.
Celebrini led all players with seven points (3g, 4a) in three pre-tournament games, including two goals against the United States. A native of Vancouver, B.C., Celebrini has been one of the best players in college hockey at just 17 years old. He leads Hockey East and is third in the NCAA with 25 points on 10 goals and 15 assists. No freshman in the nation has scored more goals or recorded more points than Celebrini, who also ranks third among all rookies in assists.
The Hockey East Player of the Month and National Rookie of the Month for October, Celebrini began his collegiate career by notching a point in 10 of his first 11 games, including an eight-game point streak. Celebrini has posted nine multi-point efforts, including four assists on Nov. 11 against UMass Lowell. He has also won 52% of his faceoffs and ranks fifth among all NCAA rookies with 131 faceoff victories. He scored two goals, including the overtime-winner, to clinch bronze for Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Under-18 Championship en route to matching Canada's single-tournament scoring record with 15 points (6g, 9a) as a 16-year-old.
A native of Stockholm, Willander has already made an impact for the Terriers 15 games into his collegiate career. The league leader in plus-minus (+13), Willander is second among BU blue liners with eight points on three goals and five assists. Selected 11th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2023 NHL Draft, Willander recorded his first two collegiate points with a goal and an assist in his Terrier debut at New Hampshire on Oct. 13. He tallied a career-best two assists in a 6-1 victory over UMass Lowell on Nov. 11 and notched two points (1g, 1a) in a weekend sweep of then-No. 9 Maine on Nov. 17-18. Willander also lit the lamp in a 5-2 victory over Merrimack to close the first semester. The dynamic defenseman is no stranger to the international stage, having won silver with Sweden at the 2023 IIHF World Under-18 Championship. He led all defensemen in the tournament with three goals and was third among all blue liners with eight points.
2024 World Junior Championship Schedule
BU is one of just two schools (Michigan State) to boast a player on three different countries at this year's tournament. Celebrini will be the first Terrier to take the ice on Tuesday when Canada faces Finland at 8:30 a.m. ET. Hutson and Team USA will then take on Norway at 11 a.m. ET before WIllander and the host nation battle Latvia at 1:30 p.m. ET. A full schedule for games featuring the three Terriers is below, with all matchups to be televised live on NHL Network.
Hutson, who won bronze with Team USA at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, is an alternate captain for the Americans. He shined in the United States' final pre-tournament game against Celebrini and Canada, scoring the overtime-winner and assisting on two other goals. Hutson finished last year's World Junior Championship with one goal and three assists for four points, including the primary assist on the overtime-winning goal in the bronze medal game. He also skated with the senior national team at the 2023 IIHF Men's World Championship in May, finishing the tournament as a plus-7 with six points on two goals and four assists.
A native of North Barrington, Illinois, Hutson has been fantastic in his sophomore season with the Terriers. The reigning Hockey East Defender of the Month entered the semester break as the top-scoring defenseman in Hockey East with 20 points on eight goals and 12 assists. No other blue liner in the country has scored more goals than Hutson, who ranks third nationally among defensemen in points. He has been held without a point on just three occasions and has recorded at least two points five different times, including his first collegiate hat trick against then-No. 3/4 North Dakota on Nov. 4.
Celebrini led all players with seven points (3g, 4a) in three pre-tournament games, including two goals against the United States. A native of Vancouver, B.C., Celebrini has been one of the best players in college hockey at just 17 years old. He leads Hockey East and is third in the NCAA with 25 points on 10 goals and 15 assists. No freshman in the nation has scored more goals or recorded more points than Celebrini, who also ranks third among all rookies in assists.
The Hockey East Player of the Month and National Rookie of the Month for October, Celebrini began his collegiate career by notching a point in 10 of his first 11 games, including an eight-game point streak. Celebrini has posted nine multi-point efforts, including four assists on Nov. 11 against UMass Lowell. He has also won 52% of his faceoffs and ranks fifth among all NCAA rookies with 131 faceoff victories. He scored two goals, including the overtime-winner, to clinch bronze for Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Under-18 Championship en route to matching Canada's single-tournament scoring record with 15 points (6g, 9a) as a 16-year-old.
A native of Stockholm, Willander has already made an impact for the Terriers 15 games into his collegiate career. The league leader in plus-minus (+13), Willander is second among BU blue liners with eight points on three goals and five assists. Selected 11th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2023 NHL Draft, Willander recorded his first two collegiate points with a goal and an assist in his Terrier debut at New Hampshire on Oct. 13. He tallied a career-best two assists in a 6-1 victory over UMass Lowell on Nov. 11 and notched two points (1g, 1a) in a weekend sweep of then-No. 9 Maine on Nov. 17-18. Willander also lit the lamp in a 5-2 victory over Merrimack to close the first semester. The dynamic defenseman is no stranger to the international stage, having won silver with Sweden at the 2023 IIHF World Under-18 Championship. He led all defensemen in the tournament with three goals and was third among all blue liners with eight points.
2024 World Junior Championship Schedule
Tuesday, Dec. 26
Canada vs. Finland, 8:30 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
United States vs. Norway, 11 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Sweden vs. Latvia, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Wednesday, Dec. 27
Canada vs. Latvia, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Thursday, Dec. 28
United States vs. Switzerland, 11 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Sweden vs. Germany, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Friday, Dec. 29
United States vs. Czechia, 11 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN3)
Canada vs. Sweden, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Sunday, Dec. 31
United States vs. Slovakia, 6 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Sweden vs. Finland, 8:30 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN3)
Canada vs. Germany, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN4)
Tuesday, Jan. 2
Quarterfinal 1, 6 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN3)
Quarterfinal 2, 8:30 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Quarterfinal 3, 11 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Quarterfinal 4, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Thursday, Jan. 4
Semifinal 1, 9 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Semifinal 2, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Friday, Jan. 5
Third-place game, 9 a.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Championship game, 1:30 p.m. ET (NHLN, TSN)
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice HockeyMen's Ice Hockey Skates with Ice Hockey in Harlem
Tuesday, December 02
Highlights: Red Hot Hockey - Men's Ice Hockey vs. Cornell (11/29/25)
Sunday, November 30
Highlights: Men's Ice Hockey vs. Northeastern (11/22/25)
Sunday, November 23
HIGHLIGHTS: Men's Ice Hockey vs. Merrimack (11/7/25)
Saturday, November 08
