OTTAWA -- Ryan Leonard said the boos that rained down from Canadian Tire Centre crowd every time he touched the puck Sunday didn't affect him.
"It's all just noise at this point," he said. "No one's really rooting for us in Canada. We make our own noise."
That noise came in the form of cries of joy after the United States captain had two assists to help his team to a 4-3 overtime win against Finland to win the gold medal at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship.
It was a repeat celebration for the U.S., which wore the black hat following its 6-2 win against Sweden in Gothenburg at the 2024 WJC. Leonard was one of seven players that skated in at least one game in Sweden that was on the ice Sunday in Ottawa.
It's the first time the U.S. has gone back-to-back at the World Juniors. But doing it in Canada, and silencing a very pro-Finland crowd of 16,822, made it just a bit sweeter.
"To do something that's never been done before in Canada, it's extremely rare and really cool," he said. "It's a dynasty. It's sick. There's no better feeling."
Leonard, a Washington Capitals prospect, was the leader through deed and action. He finished the tournament tied for second with 10 points (five goals, five assists) in seven games. He was named to the all-tournament team and was voted the event's best forward and its most valuable player.
But more than the numbers and accolades, it's how he played. He wore a full face shield for the final two games to protect a nose that was broken when he was hit in the face by a stick during the quarterfinals against Switzerland and made worse when a puck bounced off his stick and hit him in the face. Between the injuries, he scored two goals in the 7-2 victory.
"He's unbelievable," U.S. defenseman Cole Hutson (Washington Capitals) said. "He took everybody with passion, and if you watch him fight out there, you really don't want to let him down."
Leonard's confidence shone throughout the gold-medal game. He had an assist on a first-period goal by James Hagens (2025 draft eligible), but the U.S. was down 3-1 late in the second period.
And while Leonard was hearing it from the fans, he also was feeling it from a Finland team that appeared to be targeting Leonard as a way to get the U.S. out of its game.
But Hagens, who played on Leonard's line at the WJC and is his linemate at Boston College, knows better than most the kind of resolve his teammate has.
"He's a guy that he doesn't let a lot of things get to him," Hagens said. "And he didn't let that get to him. It's just something that motivates you to keep going."
Leonard kept going, and made sure his teammates did the same. When Finland goalie Petteri Rimpinen (2025 draft eligible) was stopping every U.S. chance, Leonard never lost confidence.
"The puck's going to go in," he said. "Just keep shooting."
That's what happened late in the second period, when a long shot by Brandon Svoboda (San Jose Sharks) went off the shoulder of Finland defenseman Daniel Nieminen (2025 draft eligible) and past Rimpinen at 17:38. Then Leonard skated the puck deep into the Finland zone and dropped it for a trailing Hutson, who cut through the slot and scored at 19:31 to tie the game 3-3.
"You saw the way we played in the second, the last 10 minutes the ice was tilted and they didn't really have the puck," Leonard said. "We tied it up so late and third period the puck just didn't go in, but all the chances were there. We just knew if we stayed to our game, good things would happen."
And Leonard was a big reason those good things happened. He wasn't on the ice in overtime when Teddy Stiga (Nashville Predators) scored, but his play and his leadership allowed the U.S. to reach that point.
"He was great," U.S. coach David Carle said. "He's an emotional leader. We know what he can do skill-wise and physicality-wise, but emotionally, I thought a lot of maturity out of him. Calm, steady on the bench, in the locker room. Just a quiet confidence to him. Total gamer, and couldn't have done it without him."
