Men’s World Championship Recap: Quarterfinal matchups set after wild final day of round-robin

What a night to close out the round-robin.

After over two weeks of grueling action every single day, the men’s World Championship’s preliminary round finally came to a close on Tuesday, and it was a doozy. The highlight of the night was seeing Latvia — who needed to get the game to overtime at the bare minimum to advance — beat the previously undefeated Swiss squad to win 4-3 in front of a packed home barn. The scenes were wild, the game was crazy, and it was everything Latvia was looking for.

The best game of the day might have been USA’s 4-3 win in overtime against Sweden. USA held a 3-1 lead at one point, but the Swedes fought back and forced extra time. It was there that the Americans closed it out with a win, earning top spot in Group A in the process.

Canada, meanwhile, needed a big bounce-back effort after a crushing loss to Norway. They beat Czechia 3-1 to secure the second spot in Group B, setting them up for a rematch with Finland — the two teams have met up for gold three tournaments in a row.

The rest of the day saw blowout wins, including Finland beating Denmark 7-1 in a game with no implications, and Germany managed to shut out France 5-0. Slovakia topped Norway 4-1, which temporarily gave them a spot in the playoff round, but Latvia’s extra point knocked them out in a crushing fashion.

So, now this is where things get interesting. Here’s a look at the four quarterfinal matchups for Thursday in Riga and Tampere:

Switzerland vs. Germany – 9:20 AM ET (Riga)
USA vs. Czechia – 9:20 AM ET (Tampere)
Canada vs. Finland – 1:20 PM ET (Tampere)
Sweden vs. Latvia – 1:20 PM ET (Riga)

USA beats Sweden to win Group A

After sitting out USA’s last game on Sunday, Lane Hutson (MTL) came up big to give the United States a much-needed cushion. Penalties were the name of the game, but he didn’t use being shorthanded as a negative and forced a turnover at the blueline. He then broke in all alone and beat Lars Johansson’s blocker side for the 3-1 goal. Both of his goals have been pretty, and he’s up to five points through six games now. Not bad for the college defender.
Carter Mazur (DET) is a highlight-reel machine. He put the puck between the legs to create a rebound opportunity on the power play for Conor Garland (VAN), who capitalized. He then set up the game-winner in overtime to give him a multi-point effort. Mazur’s creativity around the net has been on full display in Tampere, and he’s been a big contributor in a middle-six role for USA. You just have to love the effort.
Henrik Tommernes‘ MVP bid continues to thrive. He found Leo Carlsson on the two-man advantage before the halfway point of the first period to give him nine assists in seven games. That’s good to tie him with MacKenzie Weegar for first in scoring by a defenseman.
Will Rocco Grimaldi earn an NHL deal next year? He’s making a strong case for that to happen. He’s also up to seven points after helping to set up Garland’s 2-1 goal.
Timothy Liljegren (TOR) was buzzing, and he was rewarded with the game-tying goal with just over two minutes to go. It was his only point, but he tied for the team lead with three shots. It seems like coach Sam Hallam wants Liljegren as involved in the offense as much as possible, something many Leafs fans wish he’d have the autonomy to do.
Another excellent effort for Oscar Lindberg, who snagged a pair of assists. The former NHLer has eight points in seven games and finished the round-robin with two double-assist efforts. Not too shabby.
Leo Carlsson, a top 2023 NHL Draft prospect, had two goals for his breakout game. Nice.

Canada bounces back for win against Czechia

Tyler Myers (VAN) had nothing to show for on the scoresheet before today, but that all changed with the game-winner. Scott Laughton (PHI) won the faceoff, Jack Quinn (BUF) got it to the point and Myers sent it through Karel Vejmelka’s legs for the 2-1 goal. He’s mostly a physical blueliner, but that seemed to spark the Canadian attack. He even led the way with seven shots.
It was good to see Peyton Krebs (BUF) finally score, and his celebration showed how much it meant to him. He found space on the power play and beat Vejmelka with a quick wrister, giving Canada some life after a tough loss to Norway.
Lawson Crouse (ARI) has consistently been one of Canada’s best players, building upon a highly underrated season. Crouse scored the empty-netter that sealed the deal, but now he’s up to five goals through seven games. Whenever they need a timely goal, he’s there.
Keeping with the Coyotes theme, Karel Vejmelka (ARI) did everything possible to help the Czechs win. He stopped 41 saves and was especially great at 5-on-5, but there wasn’t much he could have done on Krebs’ goal. It’s a tough result, but Vejmelka is their guy.

Germany advances thanks to big win over France

It’s a good time to be a Sabres fan. JJ Peterka (BUF) is fourth in scoring with four goals and nine points, making him the only German forward in the top 15. He’s just playing with so much confidence every night, and that’s leading to him showing his creativity. That goal he scored tonight was excellent.
Kai Wissmann (BOS) has had a tremendous tournament, with his two-assist performance and 22:42 in ice time standing out. He now has eight points with the Germans, including five over the past two games. He’s heavily involved in the offensive side of things and they’ll need more of that in the playoff round.
With two assists, Marcel Noebels now sits first in scoring among active German players in World Championship history. He has a point-per-game through seven outings, aided by three two-point performances.

Slovakia slides to 4-1 win over Norway

Norway got excellent goaltending from Henrik Haukeland, even if it didn’t end up mattering much. He stopped 31 shots, including double digits in every period to keep the workload consistent. It was a tough end for him, but he gave it his full effort.
Former NHLer Richard Panik had two assists, including a wild empty-netter that just went under the bar despite shooting from his own zone. He played a strong third period in particular, keeping the pressure on and helping out in his own zone.
Peter Cehlarik was everywhere at the start of the game, recording four shots in the first period alone. Just don’t give him room because he’ll make you pay.

Latvia stuns Switzerland to advance

It was only fitting that Latvia’s best forward managed to score their biggest goal of the tournament. Rodrigo Abols used his speed to pass by a Swiss defender and score 32 seconds after Switzerland had tied it up. He then set up Kaspars Daugavins for the 3-3 goal, one of the biggest players of either player’s career. The crowd’s roar could be heard from Canada across the world.
Speaking of Kaspars Daugavins, that goal couldn’t have been more clutch. Switzerland had full control in the third period and the Latvians were on their heels. But if anyone was going to score a goal of that magnitude, it was the captain with NHL experience.
Artus Silovs (VAN) was under siege late in the game, stopping 10 shots in an effort to keep it a tie game. It worked out. He’s been one of the best goaltenders, which has to be exciting for Canucks fans.
With a goal, an assist and three penalties (one served for delay of game) Kevin Fiala (LAK) was a busy man tonight. Most of the team’s NHL talent sat to get some extra rest, but Fiala was roaring to go.
A couple of key faceoff wins worked in Enzo Corvi‘s favor, who had two assists on the night. It included setting up Fiala for the 1-1 goal at 26:02, and then the go-ahead goal late in the game. Another good showing from the middleman.
Shoutout to Ralfs Freibergs, who needed nearly 50 games to score his first World Championship goal. And it was a big one, setting the tone to make it 1-0 at 21:43. He didn’t stop smiling for a few minutes.

Finland routs Denmark in 7-1 win

Mikael Seppala had just one assist in 18 games prior to tonight. The stay-at-home defenseman seemingly turned on another gear tonight, recording three assists for the greatest game of his international career, no question. You love to see it.
Kaapo Kakko (NYR) had a quiet two-assist effort for Finland, giving him six in seven games. He’s not getting a ton of fanfare, but he’s doing quite well in what was an otherwise difficult year for the Rangers forward.
Hannes Bjorninen was named Finland’s best player with a three-point game. The depth forward has recorded all four of his points over the past three games, which is promising heading into the team’s battle with Canada.
Nikolaj Ehlers (WPG) finished the tournament with five goals and nine points in seven games. That is the best output of his pro career, besting his seven-point run a year ago. The Danes are done, but Ehlers was such a huge part of this team, as expected.