Men's Worlds Recap: Day 12

Tuesday was the final day of the preliminary round at the 2025 IIHF Men’s World Championship. One Mammoth forward scored his first goal of the tournament, and the results of today’s games decided who continues on. Read more below!

CZE vs USA: Jyske Bank Boxen - Herning, DEN – Group B

CZE: Karel Vejmelka
USA: Clayton Keller, Logan Cooley, Josh Doan, Michael Kesselring

It was a Mammoth vs Mammoth showdown when Czechia and the United States squared off in each team’s final preliminary round game. With a 5-2 win, the U.S. claimed bragging rights and three points. Both teams earned 17 points through the preliminary round; however, USA finished second in Group B while Czechia finished third. Frank Nazar’s two goals paced the Americans while Josh Doan, Logan Cooley, and Andrew Peeke each added one tally in the win.

Doan’s goal nine and a half minutes into the game was his first of the tournament. He had one goal and three shots through 7:10 of ice time for USA. Cooley’s goal in the final seven minutes of regulation was his fourth of the tournament and eighth point in the preliminary round. Cooley scored one goal and had nine shots, which led USA, through 19:09.

USA Captain Clayton Keller had one assist and two shots through 18:46. Defenseman Michael Kesselring played 11:16 and had one shot on goal for the Americans.

Goaltender Karel Vejmelka stopped 51 of the 55 shots he faced, including 22 of 23 in the first period. He had a strong showing for Czechia with a .927 save percentage through 60 minutes.

Both teams qualified for the quarterfinals. USA will face Finland in its quarterfinal game while Czechia will play Sweden in the next round.

CAN vs SWE: Avicii Arena – Stockholm, SWE – Group A

CAN: Barrett Hayton

Canada finished the preliminary round with a 5-3 win over Sweden, the top team in Group A. With the full three points, Canada finished the group stage with 19 points and secured first place in Group A. Travis Sanheim, Tyson Foerster, Ryan O’Reilly, Macklin Celebrini, and Nathan MacKinnon scored for Canada while Elias Lindholm, Marcus Johansson, and Rasmus Andersson had Sweden’s goals.

Forward Barrett Hayton did not dress for Tuesday’s game. Up next for Canada, a quarterfinal game against Denmark.

GER vs DEN: Jyske Bank Boxen - Herning, DEN – Group B

GER: Maksymilian Szuber

In a win or go home situation, Denmark’s 2-1 shootout win secured a spot in the quarterfinals. Nikolaj Ehlers’ third period goal (50:00) sent the game to overtime while Nick Olesen and Joachim Blichfeld each scored in the shootout. Korbinian Geibel had Germany’s lone goal in the loss.

Defenseman Maksymilian Szuber did not dress for Tuesday’s game. He played six of Germany’s seven preliminary round games. Germany finished the tournament in fifth place with 10 points.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE:

May 21: No games scheduled

May 22: Quarterfinals

• USA (Keller, Cooley, Kesselring, Doan) vs FIN: 8:20 a.m. MT - Avicii Arena, Stockholm
• SWE vs CZE (Vejmelka): 12:20 p.m. MT - Avicii Arena, Stockholm
• CAN (Hayton) vs DEN: 12:20 p.m. MT - Jyske Bank Boxen - Herning