- Switzerland beat Germany 4: 3 nP in the final opening match of the Ice Hockey World Championships in Helsinki.
- After the 7th win in the 7th game, the national team took first place with 20 points.
- Switzerland meet the United States in the quarterfinals on Thursday. Start time has not yet been determined.
Confidence, fearful opponents beat and set a record – this is how the work of the national team on Tuesday can be described. With a 4: 3 nP against Germany in the 7th and final group match of the World Cup in Helsinki, Switzerland finally entered the role of medalists before the knockout stage.
In the end, the winner of the match against Germany was Reto Ferra. Freiburg goalie thwarted 3 attempts by Germany in a penalty shoot-out (2 attempts went wrong). With Nico Hischier and Damien Riat conceding the first two penalties, Switzerland remain the last unbeaten team after the opening round of the World Cup, and can confidently advance to the quarter-finals where the United States waits on Thursday.
The negative series against Germany was stopped
In recent years, Germany has repeatedly inflicted painful defeats on Switzerland. Most recently in the 2018 Olympic round 16 (1: 2 nP) and the 2021 World Cup quarterfinals (2: 3 nP). On Tuesday Natty broke through this negative series with solid and determined performance.
As in a few previous games, coach Patrick Fischer’s team suffered weak points against Germany. At the end of the first third and the beginning of the final division, Natty lost control of the game a little bit. At these points, Guy Wiseman conceded goals in the Power Play (12 ‘), Stephen Loyle (16’) and Matthias Plasta (48 ‘).
Memories of 2013 come alive
Especially in the early stages and in the middle third long extensions, when Switzerland set foot on the gas pedal they showed their character and enthusiasm, which led to 3 goals:
- 2 mins: Andres Ambul beat Buck 1-0 after one-two with HCD team-mate Enzo Corvey.
- 22 mins: Pius Sutter crowned the Swiss pressure tie with a 2-2 draw at the start of the second period.
- 39 mins: Denise Malkin hits a crossbar to make it 3-2.
With 20 points after the group stage, Switzerland in Helsinki equaled the previous record of the 2013 World Cup in Sweden and … Finland. If the equivalent of that World Cup continues, Switzerland should be happy about the precious metals in the end: then, beating Sweden 1: 5 in the final to win the World Cup silver.
Sweden 1-0 Latvia
With Sweden beating Latvia 1-0 in a Group B match, it is already clear that Switzerland will face the United States in the quarterfinals on Thursday. William Nylander scored the only goal 35 minutes after the game. The U.S. team, which suffered two defeats against Finland and the Czech Republic, could not progress even after beating Norway in the afternoon.
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