U.S. Men’s National Team Secures 4-3 Shootout Win Against Germany in Men’s World Championship Preliminary Stage
ZURICH, Switzerland – Ryan Leonard (Amherst, Mass./Washington Capitals) netted the decisive shootout goal, propelling the U.S. Men’s National Team to a 4-3 win against Germany during the preliminary round of the 2026 IIHF Men’s World Championship at Swiss Life Arena.
“We persevered and secured a crucial victory,” stated Don Granato, head coach of the 2026 U.S. Men’s National Team. “We will keep refining our game as we prepare to take on Latvia on Saturday.”
HIGHLIGHTS
Moritz Seider initiated the scoring just one minute into the match with a shot from the point that navigated through traffic in front of the net, giving Germany a 1-0 advantage.
At 14:33, Alex Steeves (Eden Prairie, Minn./Boston Bruins) created a turnover in the offensive zone with a stick check, redirecting the puck to Isaac Howard (Hudson, Wis./Bakersfield Condors), who scored from the slot to equalize at 1-1.
The U.S. took a 2-1 lead at 5:06 of the second period when Max Sasson (Birmingham, Mich./Vancouver Canucks) seized a loose puck in the slot and swatted it past German goaltender Philipp Grubauer. Howard and Ryan Ufko (Smithtown, N.Y./Milwaukee Admirals) provided assists on the play.
At 9:53 of the second period, Frederik Tiffels gathered a rebound just outside the crease, turned toward the U.S. goal, and scored with a wrist shot, tying the game at two goals each.
With 7:18 remaining in the second frame, Marc Michaelis restored Germany’s lead after carrying the puck over the blue line and firing a wrist shot from the top of the left circle.
Team USA equalized with 5:47 left in the third period when Declan Carlile (Hartland, Mich./Merrimack College) freed the puck from a scramble at the crease, setting up Tommy Novak (River Falls, Wis./Pittsburgh Penguins), who pushed it over the goal line. After a scoreless five-minute, three-on-three overtime, the match proceeded to a five-round shootout.
Joshua Samansky converted the first attempt of the shootout, putting Germany ahead 1-0 after the initial round, followed by a series of saves from U.S. goaltender Devin Cooley (Los Gatos, Calif./Calgary Flames) and Grubauer in the second and third rounds.
In the fourth round, following another save by Cooley, Matt Coronato (Greenlawn, N.Y./Calgary Flames) equalized for Team USA. In the fifth round, Leonard executed a left-to-right shot from the slot that beat Grubauer on the glove side to clinch the shootout victory.
Cooley recorded 31 saves on 34 shots to secure the win for Team USA.
The U.S. will next compete against Latvia in preliminary round action on Saturday (May 23) at 6:20 a.m. ET. The game will be broadcast live on NHL Network and will also stream live on the NHL YouTube Channel.
NOTES: The U.S. outshot Germany 39-34 … Both Team USA and Germany were 0-1 on the power play … Ryan Leonard was named the U.S. Player of the Game.
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