The eyes of the hockey world are on Montreal this week, as the medal round of the World Junior Hockey Championships moves onto the semi-finals. Canada will be taking the ice against Sweden Wednesday night, while the United States and Russia skate in the other game.

Some of the eyes that are watching the tournament intently are in the locker room of the Weyburn Red Wings. The players have been cheering Canada on, except for one player.

Jake MacLennan is a rookie with the Red Wings, and is also from Yarmouth, Maine. Hailing from south of the 49th parallel, his allegiances fall with the United States. On New Year’s Eve, Canada and the U.S. played in the round robin, with the Americans coming away with a 3-1 victory.

“It’s good to see the home country beat Canada,” MacLennan said after practice Tuesday morning. “It’s not every day that happens.” For some of his teammates, though, his celebrations have gotten to be a little too much.

“He’s getting a little high on himself now,” defenseman Erik Olson explained, with his teammates nodding in agreement. “It’s kind of obvious the U.S. got lucky, and we’ll see what happens in the gold medal game.”

The Canadians and Americans aren’t guaranteed a spot in the gold medal final yet, but both teams look good heading in to the semi-finals. The Canadians will be facing Sweden for the first time at the tournament. The Swedish team finished first in their group, going 4-0. The leading scorer of the tournament, Alexander Nylander, plays for Sweden, and has 11 points in those four games.

The Americans must get through Russia. The United States topped the Russians 3-2 in the round robin, and finished undefeated in their pool, which included Canada. The Russians are generally a strong team to take on, so it will be a challenge for the U.S. to try to win against them for a second time.

MacLennan is confident, though, the gold medal will feature the two teams from North America. “I think that if Canada does happen to beat Sweden, I’d be happy to beat them in the gold medal game,” he stated.

That comment had his teammate Ian Parker answering back. “Take a look at your economy, J-Mac, and just remember back to 1812 when we burned down the White House,” the veteran forward relayed as he provided a quick lesson on economics and history for his young teammate.

All kidding aside in the locker room, the players will be watching Wednesday’s game intently, to see who will be playing in the gold medal game, scheduled for Thursday evening. The Red Wings, meanwhile, will continue to get ready for their next game, as they host the Notre Dame Hounds at Crescent Point Place Friday night.