On Sunday, Czechia made history by winning its first men’s hockey world championship in 14 years. The team defeated Switzerland 2-0 in the final, with David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins scoring the first goal with just over nine minutes remaining. David Kampf of the Toronto Maple Leafs added an empty-netter after Swiss goalie Leonardo Genoni was pulled. Lukas Dostal, the goalie for the Anaheim Ducks, made 31 saves to secure the shutout for the Czech team in Prague. This victory ended Czechia’s 14-year title drought, making it the longest since it started competing independently in 1993.
Meanwhile, in the bronze-medal game, Sweden beat Canada 4-2, earning its first medal since 2018 and breaking its longest medal drought since World War II. Canada had won gold or silver at the previous four world championships. The United States lost in the quarterfinals to Czechia and has not had a top-two finish at a standalone world championship since 1950.
