Canada's dominant shutout and Norway’s historic upset headline a high-stakes slate as the final four powerhouses secure their tickets for a championship showdown in Zurich.
The quarterfinals at the IIHF World Hockey Championship are in the books, and Thursday's high-stakes slate delivered a perfect mix of dominant shutouts, home-ice heroics, and historic underdog stories.
Here is how the final four punched their tickets to Zurich.
Canada 4, United States 0
- Canada Goals: Macklin Celebrini, Dylan Holloway, Connor Brown, Sidney Crosby
- United States Goals: None
- Goalie Matchup: Jet Greaves (WIN) vs. Jeremy Swayman (LOSS)
- Game Notes: Canada gets the shutout and moves on, but the early moment kind of set the tone. Ryan Lindgren’s high hit on Evan Bouchard took Bouchard out of the game and out of the tournament, and it felt like everything paused for a bit after that. Celebrini eventually opens the scoring late in the first on the power play. Holloway adds one in the second, and it settles down from there. Brown and Crosby finished it off with empty-netters, and Greaves was perfect with 34 saves.
Finland 4, Czechia 1
- Finland Goals: Sakari Manninen, Anton Lundell, Konsta Helenius, Lenni Hämäläinen
- Czechia Goals: Filip Hronek
- Goalie Matchup: Harri Säteri (WIN) vs. Karel Vejmelka (LOSS)
- Game Notes: Finland starts fast and kind of controls it from there. Two quick goals in the first from Manninen and Lundell, then Helenius makes it 3-0 in the second. Czechia gets one back on the power play through Hronek, but that’s about as close as it gets. Finland just doesn’t really open the door after that.
Switzerland 3, Sweden 1
- Switzerland Goals: Roman Josi, Denis Malgin, Calvin Thürkauf
- Sweden Goals: Linus Karlsson
- Goalie Matchup: Leonardo Genoni (WIN) vs. Samuel Ersson (LOSS)
- Game Notes: Sweden actually grabs the first one, but Switzerland kind of grows into it and never really looks back. Josi ties it and then starts driving everything. He’s involved in the next two goals as well, and the building just gets louder as it goes. Not a perfect game, a bit scrappy at times, but Switzerland finds a way through at home.
Norway 2, Latvia 0
- Norway Goals: Tinus Luc Koblar, Noah Steen
- Latvia Goals: None
- Goalie Matchup: Henrik Haukeland (WIN) vs. Elvis Merzlikins (LOSS)
- Game Notes: This one is all about Norway’s goaltending. Haukeland is perfect, and Latvia just can’t solve him at any point. It’s tight most of the way, a bit tense too, but Norway holds on and makes history with its first-ever trip to the semifinals.
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