After 16 days of incredible international hockey action, the 2026 IIHF World Championship officially came to a close today in Switzerland as the bronze and gold medal games took place at Swiss Life Arena in Zurich. Canada took on Norway for bronze, while the hosts, Switzerland, looked to win their first gold medal after three consecutive trips to the final, but standing in their way was Finland.
Bronze Medal Game: Canada (2) vs Norway (3) F/OT
Ten days after their meeting in the preliminary round, Canada and Norway faced each other once again, with the bronze medal on the line. Canada was seeking their first medal at the tournament since winning gold in 2023 and for Norway, their first trip beyond the quarterfinals in IIHF World Championship history gave them a big opportunity on Sunday.
Less than seven minutes into the first period, Norway broke the deadlock. Former Calgary Flames prospect Emilio Pettersen, who was playing in the AHL up until the conclusion of the 2024-25 season, picked up his first of the tournament to make it 1-0 Norway. A little over halfway through the middle frame, Norway would extend their league to 2-0 thanks to Anaheim Ducks defensive prospect Stian Solberg.
The Norwegians held a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes and a big reason for that was the play of netminder Henrik Haukeland, who turned aside 25 shots in the first two periods. Canada wouldn’t back down as they threw 20 more shots the way of Haukeland in the third period. Late in the final frame, Robert Thomas scored to bring this game within one. Just as it looked like Norway had the bronze medal in the bag, Robert Thomas doubled down, tying the game at 2-2 with just eight seconds left in regulation.
In overtime, Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Noah Steen dug the puck out along the wall and went in on a 2-on-1 where he ripped home the game-winning goal high glove-side on Canadian goaltender Jet Greaves, giving Norway their first ever medal at the IIHF World Championship.
Scoring Summary:
Canada
- Robert Thomas (2).
- Robert Thomas (3). Assists: Ryan O’Reilly, Macklin Celebrini.
Norway
- Emilio Pettersen (1). Assist: Christian Kaasastul.
- Stian Solberg (1). Assists: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, Johannes Johannesen.
- Noah Steen (7).
Gold Medal Game: Switzerland () vs Finland () F
Switzerland was looking to exercise some demons in Sunday’s Gold Medal Game. The 2026 IIHF World Championship marks Switzerland’s third consecutive trip to the Gold Medal Game, but they’ve come up with silver in 2024 & 2025 and were shut out in both years. Meanwhile for Finland, they’re guaranteed to win their first medal since 2022 and they’re hoping that it’ll be a third gold medal in the last seven years.
Finland and Switzerland were two of the highest scoring nations in the tournament coming into action on Sunday. The Finns had 39 goals in nine games, while the Swiss had 49. This game was going to be a low-scoring affair, given how well both teams played defensively in the tournament and that’s exactly what happened.
The Finns had a 14-7 shot advantage through 20 minutes, but neither team were able to find the back of the net in the opening period. It was status quo in the second and third periods as Finland outshot Switzerland 22-19 in regulation, with both netminders standing strong. For the second consecutive year & fourth time in the last six tournaments, the Gold Medal Game at the IIHF World Championship required overtime.
A little over halfway through overtime, Buffalo Sabres forward Konsta Helenius fired a shot through the legs of JJ Moser, who screened Leonardo Genoni, and into the back of the net, giving Finland the gold medal, their fifth in the history of the IIHF World Championship.
Scoring Summary:
Finland
- Konsta Helenius (3). Assists: Anton Lundell, Mikko Lehtonen.
My 3 Stars of the Bronze & Gold Medal Games
- Henrik Haukeland (Norway) – 44 saves on 46 shots vs Canada.
- Konsta Helenius (Finland) – Golden goal vs Switzerland.
- Justus Annunen (Finland) – 22 save shutout vs Finland.
My Tournament All-Star Team & MVP
- F: Sven Andrighetto (Switzerland), Aleksander Barkov (Finland), Macklin Celebrini (Canada).
- D: Roman Josi (Switzerland), Henri Jokiharju (Finland).
- G: Henrik Haukeland (Norway).
- MVP: Leonardo Genoni (Switzerland).
(Image Source: Roni Rekomaa / Lehtikuva)