USA Rally Late to Beat Great Britain at IIHF World Championships

Defending Champions USA too strong for Great Britain after early equalizer

The win keeps the USA unbeaten early in the tournament as they chase back-to-back world titles.

Paul Cotter, Mathieu Olivier, and Declan Carlile also scored for the USA in a dominant third period...

The USA kept up their strong start at the 2026 IIHF World Championships with a 5-1 win over Great Britain in Group A. The result opened day three in Switzerland.

Slovakia also made it two wins in a row, beating Italy to stay perfect in the tournament.

The USA looked in control against Great Britain, but a brief scare in the second period made them work for it. A late flurry sealed a 5-1 win and showed the team’s resolve.

The defending champions got off to a good start when Paul Cotter opened the scoring early. Great Britain hit back to level the game and quiet the crowd.

GB made the most of a power play as Nathanael Halbert scored his first of the tournament to make it 1-1.

USA (@usahockey) 🇺🇸 is in the win column 👏 #MensWorlds #IIHF

Game Recap 👇 https://t.co/V6y2V6i18j pic.twitter.com/1LKnLGTz8N

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) May 17, 2026

The tie didn’t last long. Isaac Howard put the USA back in front nine minutes later, with three minutes left in the second period. He later added another to close out the scoring, while Mathieu Olivier and Declan Carlile also got on the scoresheet.