World Ice Hockey Championship: Finland End 3-Year Quarter-Final Hoodoo

Leijonat down Czechs in Zurich, set up semi-final return

After finishing second in Group A, Finland beat the Czech Republic 4-1 to reach the semi-finals on May 30, joining Canada in the last four.

Goals from Manninen, Lundell, Helenius and Hameenaho powered Finland past the Czech Republic, snapping a run of last-eight losses at the Ice Hockey Worlds...

Finland snapped their quarter-final curse with a 4-1 victory over the Czech Republic in Zurich, booking a place in the World Ice Hockey Championship semi-finals for the first time since their 2022 title win. The result ended a streak of three straight last-eight exits, while the Czechs now face back-to-back quarter-final defeats since winning gold in 2024.

Six straight wins to start the tournament weren’t enough for Finland to claim top spot in Group A. A tight loss to host nation Switzerland in their final game dropped them to second, which set up the Zurich clash with the Czech Republic. The Czechs had finished third in Group B after falling to Canada in their last group match.

The team that shook off defeat fastest would punch their ticket to the semis, and it was Finland who struck first in the 8th minute. Jesse Puljujarvi picked up the puck at center ice, drove down the right wing, and set up Sakari Manninen for the opening goal.

Seven minutes later, Finland doubled their lead. They found success down the right side again when Leni Hameenaho latched onto Urho Vaakanainen’s pass and fired a shot. Josef Korenar stopped the initial attempt, but Anton Lundell was there to bury the rebound and make it 2-0.

Tempers flared late in the first period and both Mikko Lehtonen and David Tomasek were sent to the box for fighting. Finland held their 2-0 lead through to the first intermission, then all but sealed a semi-final spot by scoring a third goal less than two minutes into the second period.

Finland 🇫🇮 got the job done in the quarter-finals 👏 @leijonat #MensWorlds #IIHF

Game Recap 📰 https://t.co/uowCvS0op7 pic.twitter.com/Nc7iFjewAq

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) May 28, 2026

Mikael Granlund sent Aleksander Barkov racing into Czech territory this time, and the Florida Panthers forward repaid the favor by sliding the puck across for Konsta Helenius to finish into an open net.

Finland’s control slipped when penalties gave the Czechs a way back in. Puljujarvi was called for charging and Olli Maatta for roughing either side of the midway point, handing the Czech Republic a 5-on-3. They made it count 30 seconds later, moving the puck unopposed before Filip Hronek fired it home.

Tomasek returned to the penalty box shortly after for high-sticking, but Finland couldn’t capitalize on the power play. Even with fewer shots on goal in both periods, they still took a 2-goal lead into the second intermission.

The third period stayed even for shots until Lukas Sedlak was penalized for high-sticking with less than eight minutes left. The Czech Republic killed off Finland’s power play, but a minute later they couldn’t stop Hameenaho. Manninen set him up on the breakaway, and Hameenaho finished it off to seal the win.

Finland 🇫🇮 is on to semi's 🫡 #MensWorlds #IIHF pic.twitter.com/cmP2oYvTIu

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) May 28, 2026

Finland’s 4-1 victory sends them into the semi-finals alongside Canada. Once all four quarter-finals are done, the teams will be re-seeded. Both semi-final games are scheduled for May 30.