Kilfoil, Canada Win U18 Championship

I never shared this but there were a couple of Halifax Mooseheads' representatives participating in the Under-18 World Ice Hockey Championships that was played April 23-May 3 in Texas, USA. 

Photo - Herd Instagram

Defenceman Carlos Handel suited up for the German national team while forward Liam Kilfoil played for Team Canada. Our two players were in separate groups during the tournament so they didn't get to go against each other. 

Handel made some history on April 27 scoring the fastest two goals in a time of 19 seconds to give his team the lead. Germany would go on to win that game 5-4 and finished the preliminary round with a 1-1-0-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record, good enough for 3rd in Group B. The 18-year-old also recorded two assists in four games played. Carlos was also named captain of the team. In the quarter-finals, the guys from Deutschland would take on Slovakia but lost 3-2. 

Fastest 2 goals scored by a player at #U18MensWorlds‼️

Carlos Handel scores 2️⃣ in 19 seconds to put @deb_teams in the lead! pic.twitter.com/yKpxoOAGkl

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) April 27, 2025

Canada, meanwhile, went undefeated in Group A which set up a battle against Czechia in the quarter-finals where they won 3-2 in overtime. It was a lack luster showing for Kilfoil who did not record any points in seven games but this was his second time just this season playing for the red & white after participating in the Hlinka Gretzky Cup back in August. The 18-year-old did play 14 minutes 38 seconds in the championship game on the third line as Team Canada went on to defeat Sweden 7-0 in the gold medal game. 

Photo - Hockey Canada Twitter

Congratulations to Liam Kilfoil and Team Canada on becoming U18 world champions on Saturday.