Top prospect Matthew Schaefer playing for more than gold at WJC

OTTAWA — When the puck drops on the 2025 world junior hockey championships on Thursday, many eyes will be on Canadian defenceman Matthew Schaefer. One of the top prospects for the upcoming NHL Draft, Schaefer figures to play a prominent role for Team Canada despite the WJC generally being a tournament for older players.

The 17-year-old has shot out to a great start with the OHL's Erie Otters, scoring 22 points in 17 games and putting in a shining effort at the two-game CHL-USA Prospects Challenge last month.

The top of the 2025 NHL Draft has a cluster of players making a case to go first overall, but Schaefer might be making the strongest push. In Sportsnet scout Jason Bukala’s most recent rankings, Schaefer was above everyone else, at No. 1.

But Schaefer is playing for more than his country or draft ranking at this year’s WJC. 

“It's for my mom,” he said.

In February, Schaefer lost his mother, Jennifer, to breast cancer at just 56 years of age. But in the pain and grief of losing someone so close to him, the defenceman finds inspiration.

“It’s just made me so strong,” Schaefer told Sportsnet.ca. “I think it was really tough when my mom passed away. I think that was one that really hit me. But I feel like now I can really play for my mom, and I know she's always going to be with me, and she's definitely the strongest person I've known. So, I know her strength and her happiness and lovingness, and all that is always going to be with me every day, and I can kind of play for her and carry her legacy on.”

Like most hockey players, Schaefer’s introduction to the sport began with his family. His journey started with backyard roller-hockey games with his mother and brother, Jonathon, who is nine years Matthew’s senior and played three seasons for the OHL’s Niagara IceDogs, from 2016 to 2019. Jennifer would strap on the goalie pads so the boys could have someone to shoot on and the two of them would battle it out.

“We're really close,” Matthew Schaefer said. “He'd be in the OHL, and I'd still be pretty young, but he put me in full equipment, and we put rollerblades on and (he) just killed me. Like, I tried to kill him, but it wouldn't really work. He was a lot bigger and stronger than me, but he toughened me up, that's for sure. It was very competitive. Someone would end up being really salty near the end.”

Then, suddenly, the brothers had to watch their mother fight for her life. 

“Two years, she was battling to stay with us,” Schaefer said. “She was fighting as hard as she could for an extra two years instead of giving up. And she got to spend two years with us that we got extra.” 

Schaefer’s mother was highly involved in his and his brother’s hockey careers, often driving them from rink to rink and attending all their games. Matthew said she also acted as his stylist, especially as he got to the higher levels and had to dress up for games. 

“When I started wearing suits, I'd hop out of the shower and she'd have my stuff all laid out and style me out,” Schaefer said. “And everyone would be complimenting me. I'd always give her a (call), and then she would tell me what looks good.” 

Today, as a draft-eligible underager at the WJC, Schaefer is eager to take on a bigger role for his country than his age might suggest. He stood out in pre-tournament action, playing in one of the two games against the USports All-Stars, and is shaping up to be the quarterback of Canada’s top power-play unit. He could also kill penalties for them.

Schaefer said he watches Cale Makar closely and models his game after the best defenceman in the NHL. Why not, when you’ve got the all-around ability and natural skills that Schaefer has?

Canada coach Dave Cameron has been impressed by all the things Schaefer has to offer. 

“It's not one single thing,” Cameron said. “He’s just a heck of a hockey player that plays a 200-foot game.”

While Schaefer has squarely put himself on the map for consideration atop the 2025 NHL Draft in scouting circles, this year’s world junior championship will be his introduction to fans at a national level. 

With a goal of being the first defenceman taken next June, Schaefer could come out of this WJC separating himself from the pack of players in the class and begin grabbing more attention as the top prospect this season.

Not that he’s putting too much emphasis on that distinction. 

“I don't really look at that stuff,” Schaefer said of the various draft rankings. “Everyone's always trying to get caught up in the noise and all this stuff, and they tell me all this stuff. But I really say, that's just an article that doesn't mean anything. So, I like to just focus on the game, go to work and play the game because I love it.”

As families across Canada settle in to watch Schaefer represent the country and showcase his talents for the draft, there will be much discussion as to where he could be taken, how quickly he could arrive in the NHL and just how special of a talent he could still develop into. 

But in Schaefer’s mind, this tournament is about his own family. 

This one’s for Jennifer.