All four participating Canucks were in action during Day 4 of the 2026 IIIHF World Championship.
All four participating members of the Vancouver Canucks were in action at the 2026 IIHF World Championship today, with all four facing off against one of their teammates. Aatu Räty and Team Finland took a surprising 6–2 win against Max Sasson and Team USA, while Filip Hronek notched his first point of the tournament in Czechia’s 4–3 win against Linus Karlsson and Sweden. Here is a recap of the Canucks’ performances at the 2026 IIHF World Championship on May 18.
Finland 6, USA 2
Finland put Team USA on the ropes by scoring three goals during the first period, while Matt Coronato managed one goal for the U.S. in that same window. Two goals from Lenni Hämeenaho and Saku Mäenalanen put Finland’s lead out of reach for the U.S., who only managed one more goal from Ryan Leonard by the end of the game. Anton Lundell rounded things off for Finland to put the game away by a score of 6–2.
In today’s effort, Räty extended his current tournament point-streak to three games, scoring Finland’s third goal of the game by cutting into the O-zone and sending a sharp shot on Joseph Woll from semi far-out. As well as the goal, he finished today’s game with two shots on goal and 11:34 minutes played.
On the other side of today’s game was Sasson, who reprised his role at center alongside Paul Cotter and Mathieu Olivier. While the trio didn’t quite find the same success they achieved from the game before, Sasson managed two shots on goal while his linemate Olivier managed a team-high of six. The Canucks forward did get a slight increase in ice time compared to yesterday (12:22), playing for a total of 15:02 minutes in the loss.
Czechia 4, Sweden 3
Despite a lofty attempt, Sweden couldn’t quite catch up to the onslaught of offence that Czechia released in the first period, dropping today’s game by a narrow score of 4–3. Goals from Matěj Blümel three minutes in, Dominik Kubalik 12 minutes in, and Jakub Flek at the 13-minute mark put Czechia up 3–0 early on, though Sweden managed two power play goals from Joel Persson and Simon Holmström to get themselves back on track. Despite a goal from former Canuck Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Czechia’s Jiří Černoch ultimately gave Czechia the difference-maker.
After going without a point in the past two games, Hronek managed his first assist in today’s winning effort, firing the shot on goal that made its way in thanks to Blümel. With usual defence partner Michal Kempný out of today’s match due to illness, the Canucks defenceman skated alongside Libor Hájek. As a result, Hronek ended up playing even more than past games, skating in a team-high 25:52 minutes — being the only player to log more than 20 minutes today.
Karlsson’s tournament point streak came to an end today, as the Canucks forward did not end up finding the scoresheet in Sweden’s defeat. He remained on Sweden’s second line during today’s game, skating with Holmström and Jacob de la Rose — the duo he has been with since the start of the tournament. He ended up on the ice for a total of 13:26 minutes, registering one shot on goal in this span of time.
Apr 14, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek (17) during a stop in play against the Los Angeles Kings in the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn ImagesMay 18 Standings:
Group A:
Switzerland: 3–0–0–0
Finland: 3–0–0–0
Austria: 2–0–0–0
Latvia: 1–0–0–1
USA: 1–0–0–2
Hungary: 0–0–0–2
Great Britain: 0–0–0–2
Germany: 0–0–0–3
Group B:
Canada: 3–0–0–0
Czechia: 2–0–1–0
Slovakia: 2–0–0–0
Norway: 1–0–0–1
Sweden: 1–0–0–2
Slovenia: 0–1–0–1
Italy: 0–0–0–2
Denmark: 0–0–0–3
May 20 Schedule:
Czechia vs. Italy - 7:20 am PT
Slovenia vs. Sweden - 11:20 am PT
Germany vs. USA - 11:20 am PT
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