IIHF World Championship Day 6 recap: Rasmus Andersson scores as round robin reaches halfway mark

We are now halfway through the round-robin stage of the IIHF World Championship, with another four games on the schedule for Day 6.

Slovakia vs France

Both Slovakia and France were looking to bounce back after losses in their previous games. This was a tight match-up from start to finish, beginning with a scoreless first period.

In the second, it was Slovakia who broke the deadlock after a scramble in front of the French net led to Martin Chromiak batting the puck in. France responded later in the period with a beautiful wrist shot from Louis Boudon that beat the Slovak netminder top shelf.

Slovakia dominated the third period, out-shooting France 15-6. French goalie Antoine Keller kept his team in the game but ultimately surrendered the game-winner to Mislav Rosandić midway through the third. Slovakia returns to the win column with a 2-1 victory.

Sam Honzek had another solid outing, picking up an assist—his second point in as many games. He had a couple of whacks at the puck before Chromiak scored the opening goal. Honzek also saw about a one-minute increase in ice time compared to previous games. The Slovak coaching staff continues to rely heavily on their top forwards, who are averaging around 20 minutes per game.

Next games:

• Slovakia: May 17 vs Canada

• France: May 16 vs Austria

USA vs Norway

It’s hard to understand why a team with as much talent as the United States is struggling against some of these opponents. After a 3-0 loss to Switzerland, it felt like the Americans were poised for a breakout performance—and it looked that way early against Norway.

The USA came out flying, scoring four goals in the first period. Norway managed one of their own, ending the frame 4-1 in favour of the Americans.

Tage Thompson scored his second goal early in the second, and it looked like a blowout was in the works. But Norway pushed back, scoring shortly after to cut the lead to three. They added another late in the period to make it 5-3 heading into the third.

In the final frame, Norway kept pressing. Noah Steen brought the Norwegians within one, and with just 90 seconds left, Stian Solberg completed his hat trick and tied the game 5-5, forcing overtime.

Overtime was uneventful until Tage Thompson completed his own hat trick, sealing a 6-5 win for Team USA and crushing Norway’s comeback bid.

Next games:

• USA: May 17 vs Germany

• Norway: May 16 vs Switzerland

  Denmark vs Kazakhstan

Denmark came into the game still looking for their first win of the tournament, while Kazakhstan was hoping to rebound after dropping their previous two.

The first period was quiet, with Kazakhstan controlling much of the play. They out-shot the Danes 7-1 but couldn’t solve Danish goaltender Frederik Dichow.

In the second, Mikkel Aagaard opened the scoring for Denmark with a sharp wrist shot from the slot. They added another before the period ended to take a 2-0 lead.

Kazakhstan clawed one back early in the third on a broken play. The puck popped into the air, and Mikita Mikhailis batted it into the net to cut the lead to one. But Denmark responded with two goals just 20 seconds apart midway through the period to make it 4-1, effectively putting the game out of reach. A late empty-netter sealed the 5–2 win—Denmark’s first of the tournament, improving their record to 1-3.

Next games:

•   Denmark: May 16 vs Hungary

• Kazakhstan: May 17 vs Czechia

Sweden vs Latvia

This game was all Sweden from the second period onward. After a scoreless first, Sweden took control in the middle frame.

Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson opened the scoring after being left unchecked by the Latvian defence. Andersson circled behind the net and walked out in front uncontested, scoring his second of the tournament. Sweden finished the second period up 2-0.

In the third, Sweden’s offence exploded. They scored four more, including a slick passing play from Leo Carlsson to set up Lucas Raymond. Goalie Samuel Ersson stopped all 20 shots he faced for his first shutout of the tournament. In the end, it was a dominant 6-0 victory for Sweden.

Andersson had a solid game beyond the goal, despite taking a minor penalty. With the game largely in hand, Swedish coaches were able to spread the minutes more evenly and give younger defencemen valuable ice time. Mikael Backlund did not dress and is currently considered day-to-day with an injury.

Next games:

• Sweden: May 16 vs Slovenia

• Latvia: May 17 vs Finland

Day 7 schedule

(All times MT.)

• Finland vs Slovenia — 8:20 a.m.

• Switzerland vs Germany — 8:20 a.m.

• Canada vs Austria — 12:20 p.m.

• Czechia vs Hungary — 12:20 p.m.

Tomorrow promises to be another exciting day at the World Championship, with Canada back in action. Additionally, Flames forward Adam Klapka has officially been added to the active Czechia roster—potentially giving Flames fans another reason to tune in.