Eight teams took action on day three of the World Championships. Switzerland upset Czechia with an overtime win, while the United States and Canada stayed at the top of their groups. One of the most consequential games featured Sweden taking down their rivals for the first time in almost two decades.
First period: Sweden takes an early lead
The first ten minutes were the worst case scenario for Finland. They didn’t record a single shot, and went down 2-0 on goals by Ida Karlsson and Hilda Svensson. Karlsson’s goal four minutes into the game marked the University of Minnesota-Duluth defender’s first at a World Championship. Svensson doubled the lead just four minutes later, on a power play after Oona Koukkala got called for hooking. Sweden was buzzing, constantly rotating in the offensive zone and getting bodies in front of Sanni Ahola. She’d only get credited for the assist on Svensson’s goal, but defender Jenna Raunio jumping into the slot helped Sweden disorientate Finland’s defense and grab the lead early.
After the second goal, Finland adjusted and countered with chances of their own. A late power play helped Finland close the shot deficit to 13-8, ending the period on a high note.
Second period: Stalemate
Finland carried their momentum from the end of the first period into the second. They flipped the shot count from the first and outshot Sweden 13-8, including six net-front chances. Swedish goaltender Ebba Svensson Träff made several key saves to hold Sweden’s lead, and defender Mira Jungåker made multiple blocks in the slot. Both teams would get an opportunity on the power play, but didn’t convert.
Third period: Sweden secures the 4-1 win
The ice opened up in the third period, with both teams exchanging back and forth chances off the rush. Sara Hjalmarsson tipped in a shot from Mira Jungåker with 16 minutes remaining to give Sweden the 3-0 lead. The goal marked Jungåker’s second primary assist of the game, and third of the tournament.
Petra Nieminen answered right back and scored off of a redirect from Siiri Yrjölä’s shot. The goal tied Nieminen for the most goals by a Finnish player at the World Championships. Nieminen shares the record with Riikka Sallinen and current teammate Michelle Karvinen, but reached the milestone in 21 fewer games than Karvinen.
Sweden’s defense clamped down on any momentum Finland may have gained from the Nieminen goal. They kept Finland to the boards and drew a penalty on Michelle Karvinen to run down the clock. Tilde Grillfors sealed the win with an empty net goal, the 18-year-old’s first World Championship goal.
Finland got more bad news after Elisa Holopainen took a stick to the neck and left the game with just minutes remaining. Holopainen, a New York Sirens draft pick, is one of Finland’s top forwards. Before exiting, she had five shots on goal.
“These are close games, the margins are small. They capitalized on their chances, and we didn’t. Today was their day,” Petra Nieminen told IIHF.com after the game. Finland finished the game with 29 shots to Sweden’s 32, and failed to score on either power play opportunities
Switzerland 2, Czechia 1 (OT)
Another international tournament, another game-winning goal for Alina Müller. Most of regulation featured more penalties than shots, with a combined 45 penalty minutes between the two teams. Klára Hymlárová received a five minute major and a game misconduct for boarding Swiss forward Naemi Herzig. Luckily, Herzig was able to stay in the game. She played nearly 20 minutes on Switzerland’s second line, where her 72.7% performance in the faceoff circle was crucial.
Switzerland took a penalty of their own to make it a four-on-four late in the period. Despite losing the power play, Switzerland took advantage of the open ice and created a two-on-one with Ivana Wey and Müller. Czech goaltender Klára Peslarová made the initial save, but Wey showed off her hand-eye coordination and corralled the wild rebound to make it 1-0 Switzerland.
Czechia dominated the second period, outshooting Switzerland 21-1 and getting a lot of traffic in front of Saskia Maurer. Colgate forward Linda Vocetková evened the game up for Czechia early in the period with her first World Championship goal.
Despite having the momentum, offensive zone time, and four power play opportunities in the second, Czechia failed to gain a lead. Maurer’s brilliance took the energy out of Czechia in the third, where they looked lethargic and only managed eight shots on goal. A lack of urgency continuted to define Czechia’s game in overtime, with players appearing completely disconnected from each other.
Czechia’s fragmentation was most apparent on Switzerland’s game winning goal. Two Czech players follow Alessia Baechler down low in the zone, leaving the dangerous Müller completely open. With ample time and space, she rifled one through Peslarová for the game winning goal.
USA 5, Germany 0
The new additions to USA’s roster are making their presence felt. Casey O’Brien opened the scoring late in the first period for her second of the tournament. Fellow New York Siren Emma Peschel joined O’Brien with her first ever Team USA goal on a shot from the blue line.
Alex Carpenter added to the lead in the second off a play behind the net from Kelly Pannek. While pressure stayed on for the rest of the period, Germany kept the game close at 3-0 thanks to great goaltending from Sandra Abstreiter.
The third period felt the most even, with each team getting six shots on goal. Germany was able to generate some offensive zone time, but failed to get anything truly dangerous on Gwyneth Philips. The United States, meanwhile, capitalized on their few shots and added to their lead with goals from Abbey Murphy and Joy Dunne. Both goals involved defensive zone turnovers for Germany when attempting a zone exit. We also had our daily dose of “Caroline Harvey doing Caroline Harvey things” on Dunne’s goal, as she blew past two German players to dish the puck to Dunne.
One positive take away for Germany is their penalty kill. Germany was perfect over six minutes of penalty kill time, including nearly four minutes straight shorthanded in the second. Nina Jobst-Smith played a major role in Germany’s special teams and led all players with 24:45 in ice time.
Canada 9, Japan 0
The last thing that Japan probably wanted to do after an emotional loss Saturday was play Canada, but the schedule stops for no one.
Like Germany, Japan kept the game fairly close through the first two periods. Canada dominated possession but were only up by two after the first period, thanks to goals from Chloe Primerano and Erin Ambrose. Daryl Watts added to the lead in the second on a two player advantage. Shortly after, Rosalie Tremblay scored a goal of her own to make it 4-0 for Canada after two periods.
Japan was able to counter several high-danger chances in the second, including two high danger chances from Yumeka Wajima. PWHL Detroit forward Akane Shiga also had three shots in the second, and totaled five of Japan’s 14 shots. Ève Gascon stayed sharp despite the long gaps between seeing shots.
The third period is where things unraveled for Japan. With fatigue setting in from the amount of time they spent defending, Riko Kawaguchi was completely bombarded in her crease. She faced 25 shots in the third period and conceded five goals. Kendall Cooper, Emma Maltais, Sophie Jaques, Sarah Wozniewicz, and Caitlin Kraemer each banked a goal to help Canada run away with the game.
Japanese goaltender Riko Kawaguchi made her first start of the tournament and faced 59 shots, playing all 60 minutes of the game.
For Canada, this was a game of milestones. Sarah Wozniewicz, Rosalie Tremblay, Chloe Primerano, and Caitlin Kraemer all got their first ever World Championship goals. Sara Manness made her debut and recorded a point. Ève Gascon made her first start and earned a shutout. More pucks were fished out of nets for keepsake than one can count.
Monday’s schedule
Austria vs. USA
7pm (Local) / 1pm (EST)
Denmark vs. Canada
7pm (Local) / 1pm (EST)
