MSU's Augustine Shines in Overtime Loss at the World Juniors
Michigan State goaltender Trey Augustine made 40 saves for the United States in a 4-3 overtime loss to Finland in the Preliminary round of the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championships.
Augustine kept Team USA in the game while Finland dominated the offensive zone, outshooting the United States 44-33.
Team USA’s offense had been great in the first two games, but against Finland, it finally cooled down, missing out on all four power-play chances.
The United States was chasing all game, but late in the third period, Minnesota forward Brodie Ziemer leveled the score 3-3.
Augustine held strong in the net through regulation but couldn’t stop a 2-on-1 rush from Finland, with Tuomas Uronen netting the game-winning goal.
This loss does not hurt the United States’ chances of defending the Gold Medal they won last year in Sweden.
In three games, Augustine has a 3.94 GAA this tournament, which is higher than his college average of 1.98 GAA at Michigan State this season.
This is more a reflection of how well the Team USA offense has played so far. In high-scoring, fast-paced games, Augustine is bound to allow a few more goals.
On Tuesday, Team USA faces Canada in the final game of the Preliminary round. The host country, Canada, also enters with one loss in the tournament. On Friday, Canada suffered a stunning overtime loss to Latvia, a team they were heavily favored to beat.
The first elimination game for Team USA will be the quarterfinals, which will be held on Thursday. The United States’ quarterfinal opponent remains to be determined, but there is a possibility Augustine could face Slovakia and fellow Spartan Maxim Strbak.
Team USA has had consistent success in the event, medaling in seven of the last nine World Junior Championships.
On Sunday, while Augustine and Strbak were away at the World Juniors in Ottawa, Ontario., their Michigan State Spartans were participating in the Great Lakes Invitational in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Augustine’s backup, sophomore goaltender Luca Di Pasquo was lights out, earning his second shutout of the season in a 2-0 victory over Northern Michigan.
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