2026 IIHF World Championship: Top standouts from Day 1
Day of the 2026 IIHF Men’s World Championship is in the books, and we didn’t see many surprises.
Canada, Finland, Czechia and Switzerland came home with victories, while Sweden, Germany, Denmark and the United States will look to bounce back later this weekend. Most of the games were rather tight, with the best team coming up with the victory in each case.
Here’s a look at the top performers from Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland on Friday:
Canada 5, Sweden 3
It was a battle of two heavyweights to kick off Group B action, with Canada fending off multiple comeback efforts by the Swedes to win the game 5-3.
Canada took a 2-0 lead in the first period thanks to goals from John Tavares and Ryan O’Reilly. The Swedes were the much better team in the second, though, with Jacob Larsson, Lucas Raymond and Mattias Ekholm all registering goals. Dylan Holloway added one for Canada to make it a 3-3 game to help set the stage for a solid third.
Canada regrouped and came out flying in the third. Connor Brown would score the eventual game-winning goal at 43:21, while Dylan Cozens would add another at 52:59 to finish off the afternoon affair.
Canada
#16 Connor Brown, RW (New Jersey Devils): Remember the last time Brown represented Canada? He led the tournament with an incredible 16 points en route to gold back in 2021. He’s coming off a solid 43-point campaign with the Devils, where he proved his shot was still quite lethal. Brown scored today to help put the game away, while also showing a willingness to battle just about anyone along the boards.
#39 Fraser Minten, C (Boston Bruins): Minten is a smart forward who must play with a magnet attached to him or something. He does a great job of drawing defenders away from the middle of the ice, which was perfectly evident on the 3-2 Canadian goal. There, he forced Sweden’s second D pair to move to the left side, allowing Holloway free rein to shoot from the open slot. Minten then added another assist to finish as Canada’s player of the game. Few players in any game did a better job of creating space and opportunities for their linemates today as Minten.
#91 John Tavares, LW (Toronto Maple Leafs): Tavares had a noticeable game on Canada’s third line. He scored the opening goal, and then had a couple of excellent plays in the second period to help generate some energy. He’s a smart forward who tends to always shine for his country, and he proved to be a nightmare matchup for some of Sweden’s defenders today.
#94 Porter Martone, LW (Philadelphia Flyers): Martone was the last player added to Canada’s roster, but he wasted no time making an impact. Playing on Canada’s fourth line, the Flyers winger had two assists alongside Minten and Brown. It felt like Martone was engaged every time he hit the offensive zone, making crisp, smart passes consistently.
Sweden
#15 Jack Berglund, C (Philadelphia Flyers): Berglund had a mega second period, assisting on the first Swedish goal before creating a high-quality screen on the second goal. He was everywhere in this one, even with limited ice time as Sweden’s fourth-line center. There’s just something about Berglund when he represents his country – no matter the level, he makes a positive impression every time the pressure is on.
#41 Ivar Stenberg, LW (2026 NHL Draft): Stenberg was Sweden’s best player in the opening period, no question about it. The potential first overall pick created some quality chances and even scored, only for the goal to be called back due to a high stick. Stenberg might be young, but he’s smart, aggressive and extremely competitive. Scouts love him, and Maple Leafs fans should absolutely be paying attention.
#61 Viggo Bjorck, C (2026 NHL Draft): The Swedes lacked center depth heading into this tournament, but it allowed Bjorck to absorb the No. 1 middleman gig. Today, he was excellent, showing that despite being a bit smaller, he’s absolutely fearless. He continuously went up against some of Canada’s better players and rarely lost a physical battle. When you’re smaller, you need to be a bulldog – just ask Zach Benson. Bjorck is going to blow away people who haven’t been watching him closely in recent months.
Finland 3, Germany 1
Finland will be happy with their Game 1 effort against beating Germany 3-1 to kick off Group A play.
The Finns scored twice on the power play, with Anton Lundell scoring eight minutes in before Jesse Puljujarvi added one early in the third. Stefan Loibl would give Germany something to get excited about with 12 minutes left, only for Aatu Raty to make it 3-1 with five minutes to go to give the Finns the advantage.
Germany’s Philipp Grubauer was solid with 21 saves, while Justus Annunen stopped 16 of the 17 shots sent his way.
Finland
#15 Anton Lundell, C (Florida Panthers): Lundell had a goal and an assist in this one. Even with Barkov on the roster, Lundell has the opportunity to be Finland’s most valuable asset. He’s coming off an excellent year where he continued to show his two-way dominance. Today, he’s a leader who’s expected to generate quality chances, just like he did when the Panthers were banged up as much as they were early in the year.
#16 Aleksander Barkov, C (Florida Panthers): Don’t worry, Panthers fans – it’s like he never lost a beat. Time and time again today, Barkov was seen making high-end plays. None was better than what he did on the second goal, though. While screening Grubauer on the man advantage, the puck went between his legs. Instead of trying to jam it in himself, he let the puck keep going to Puljujarvi, who made no mistake. That was a high-IQ play that many younger players would have screwed up – but Barkov is a high-end thinker who is looking to make the most of an otherwise lost season.
#86 Teuvo Teravainen, RW (Chicago Blackhawks): Teravainen is a proven national team star, especially on the power play. He had a pair of assists today, showcasing his typical slick playmaking ability. Teravainen had a difficult season, struggling with both Chicago and the Finnish Olympic team. But every time he comes to this event, Teravainen’s confidence seems to shine through. He’ll be vital to Finland’s success moving forward.
Germany
#30 Philipp Grubauer, G (Seattle Kraken): Grubauer gave the Germans a fighting chance in this one. He allowed two goals on the power play, but otherwise was a beast at 5-on-5, for the most part. He got caught scrambling on a few plays early, but eventually settled down and weathered the Finnish storm. Grubauer will be counted on to steal a few wins along the way, and today was a good start, even if the result didn’t pan out.
#53 Moritz Seider, D (Detroit Red Wings): Seider had a fantastic game. He led the Germans in ice time by quite a margin, as you’d expect. He also made the best save of the game, somehow turning around and getting the puck on the goal line after it trickled past Grubauer. I like his confidence with and without the puck, and his hockey sense is clearly far superior to the rest of the German squad. Seider deserved to be a Norris Trophy finalist, no question about it.
Czechia 4, Denmark 1
Czechia scored a pair of goals early in the period, giving them a nice advantage, and ultimately beat Denmark 4-1 on Friday evening.
Czechia scored two goals just over a minute apart, with Dominik Kubalik and Daniel Vozenilek finding the back of the net. The Danes kept it much closer in the second period, but Roman Cervenka scored to put the game out of reach.
The Danes had a reason to celebrate when Mikkel Aagaard scored with the man advantage at 57:30, but Matej Blumel capped the night off with the fourth Czech goal – this time coming on the empty net.
Czechia
#32 Josef Korenar, G: Korenar wasn’t busy in the first, with just one shot against. But he had to be much busier in the second as the Danes outshot Czechia 11-7. What’s important was that Korenar stayed focused and battled hard when needed after an otherwise quiet opening frame. The former NHL goaltender has never been a starter at this event – he last was a No. 1 internationally at the 2018 World Juniors. But the veteran goaltender looked quick in his crease and gave the Danes little to shoot at.
#17 Filip Hronek, D (Vancouver Canucks): Hronek was smooth and steady the whole night. The Czechs were obviously the better team, but the Danes had some decent rushes that Hronek had no issue dealing with. He rarely made a mistake with the puck and instead controlled the pace from his zone. Hronek will likely need to be Czechia’s best player the rest of the way, and he’s definitely capable of it.
#18 Dominik Kubalik, LW: At his best, Kubalik’s shot can’t be stopped. He has an excellent release, which he showed off with a great wrister in the opening period after helping to steal the puck. The former NHL forward isn’t the best two-way guy but it felt like he did his job, making sure the Danes didn’t have much time to work with in their own zone.
#81 Matej Blumel, RW (Boston Bruins): Blumel had a goal and an assist tonight, with the goal coming on the empty net. I was more impressed with his overall energy, with the winger doing a lot of the hard work to get the puck to linemates Roman Cervenka and Lukas Sedlak. Blumel is a hard worker who does a good job defensively, but he can also play with some skill, too.
Denmark
#30 Mads Sogaard, G (Ottawa Senators): Solgaard got beat by two quick releases in the first period, but those weren’t his fault. The Czechs had full control for most of the game, and Sogaard kept his team involved all night long. Sogaard’s glove hand was particularly impressive today, too.
Switzerland 3, USA 1
Switzerland is off to a good start on home ice, beating USA 3-1 in a rematch of the gold medal game from a year ago.
The hometown squad started off with a 2-0 lead in the first period, with Pius Suter and Sven Andrighetto scoring goals that American goaltender Joseph Woll would probably wish he had back.
The Americans would push back, and were the better team for large chunks of the night. They were eventually rewarded with a goal from Alex Steeves in the third period, making it 2-1 in the latter stages. Unfortunately for the Americans, Ken Jager tipped in a shot from Simon Knak to make it 3-1 to help bring the Swiss fans back to their feet.
Switzerland
#63 Leonardo Genoni, G: Genoni introduced himself to NHL fans during the Olympics after registering two shutouts and a .946 save percentage through four games. Genoni didn’t finish with a donut today, but he was great when he needed to be, especially on the huge glove save on Ike Howard in the third. He’s a smaller goalie who moves well and still boasts high-end reactions, despite being one of the oldest players in the tournament. We know Switzerland will ride him as much as possible to win gold on home ice.
#44 Pius Suter, RW (St. Louis Blues): Suter had a goal and an assist in the first period, while doing a lot of the dirty work around the American net. He’s built strong and is willing to grind his way to goals, as he proved during his breakout 25-goal, 46-point season in Vancouver two years ago. Suter had a good Olympic tournament and has generally been a point-producer whenever he has played for Switzerland. We know he has skill, and this is the type of event where he can flash it.
#85 Sven Andrighetto, LW: Ghetto had a goal and an assist in the first period. That goal wasn’t one he’d likely be able to replicate, but it was instrumental in giving the Swiss some breathing room as the Americans kept pushing on in the third. Andrighetto’s NHL career didn’t pan out, but he has been very productive internationally the past few years and was a big reason why the Swiss made it to the title game a year ago.
USA
#16 Mason Lohrei, D (Boston Bruins): Lohrei was USA’s lone returnee from last year’s roster that beat the Swiss for gold. The coaching staff seemed to really rely on him, giving him plenty of ice time. He had a pair of decent scoring chances through the opening 40 minutes and often looked good on the rush. He saw a lot of ice time down the stretch as the Americans tried to battle back, too.
#15 Tommy Novak, C (Pittsburgh Penguins): Novak isn’t flashy, but he’ll grind you down and give you the energy you’re looking for. He’s a bit of a Swiss-army knife – he’s not spectacular at anything, but he can do a bit of everything. I liked Novak in transition, and I thought he did a great job of breaking up plays and taking space away from the Swiss attack.