2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup – Semifinals Recap

The semifinal stage of the Hlinka Gretzky Cup didn’t just deliver drama — it delivered tournament-defining moments. From an all-out North American showdown decided in a shootout to a wild Scandinavian comeback capped in overtime, Brno and Trenčín saw the kind of hockey that will be replayed for years.

Semifinal Results

Semifinal: USA 4 – Canada 3 (SO)

The first semifinal was billed as a clash of styles — Canada’s structured, high-discipline approach versus USA’s speed and aggression — and it lived up to every bit of the hype.

USA came out flying, forcing turnovers on the forecheck and drawing an early power play. Just over five minutes in, Noah Davidson opened the scoring, ripping a shot blocker-side off a clean setup from Blake Zielinski and Will McLaughlin. Canada pushed back with heavy offensive zone pressure, but USA’s penalty kill held firm through the remainder of the first.

Early in the second, Canada struck back. At 00:34, Ethan Belchetz pounced on a loose puck in the slot after Carson Carels and Dimian Zhilkin worked it down low, tying the game at 1–1. But the Americans answered almost immediately — Luke Puchner broke in off the rush at 8:32, finishing a crisp passing sequence from Brodie Rogowski and Zaide Penner to restore the lead.

Then came a critical moment. With less than two minutes left in the period, USA went back to the power play. Blake Zielinski, who’s been one of the tournament’s most consistent producers, blasted a one-timer from Jack Hextall’s feed, making it 3–1 and swinging momentum squarely in their favor heading into the third.

But Canada wasn’t done. Their push started just three minutes into the final frame when Tynan Lawrence converted on the power play from Ryan Lin, cutting the deficit to one. The equalizer came at 14:55 — Mathis Preston found space in the slot and snapped one past the glove to make it 3–3. The final minutes were tense, with both teams trading high-danger chances, but neither could break through.

Overtime brought end-to-end action, with both goalies standing tall. In the shootout, USA was flawless — Joseph Salandra, Nikita Klepov, and Blake Zielinski all scored, while netminder shut the door. USA booked their place in the gold medal game, leaving Canada to regroup for bronze.

Semifinal: Sweden 6 – Finland 5 (OT)

If Semifinal 1 was tactical, Semifinal 2 was pure chaos — a game that flipped momentum three separate times before Sweden sealed it in overtime.

Sweden wasted no time, scoring at 4:24 of the first when Marcus Nordmark took a cross-ice pass from Ola Palme and snapped it under the bar. Finland’s defense bent but didn’t break for the rest of the period, but Axel Elofsson doubled the lead early in the second, finishing a quick touch pass from Ludvig Andersson.

That’s when Finland ignited. At 2:32, Oliver Suvanto struck back from in tight after Oliver Wahlroos and Oscar Hemming set up a netfront scramble. Then in the third, Finland exploded. Vilho Vanhatalo tied the game at 2–2 just 1:03 in from Juuso Laitinen and Juho Piiparinen. Just 1:50 later, Oscar Hemming gave Finland the lead from Eelis Uronen and Wahlroos. At 4:44, Luka Arkko made it 4–2 on a feed from Julius Suominen and Aapo Uronen. And when Samu Alalauri converted a power-play chance at 8:02 from Janne Karassaari, it was 5–2 and looked like Finland’s upset was on.

But Sweden roared back. Axel Elofsson scored his second of the night at 9:13 off a feed from Elton Hermansson. At 13:17, Bosse Meijer brought it to 5–4, with Hermansson and Melvin Isaksson picking up assists. The equalizer came at 17:33 when Marcus Nordmark finished a perfect pass from Axel Elofsson and Malte Gustafsson to complete the comeback and force overtime.

In OT, it was destiny — Marcus Nordmark, already with two goals, completed his hat trick just 2:27 in on another feed from Elofsson, sending Sweden into the gold medal game in the most dramatic fashion possible.

Placement Games

5th Place

Czechia 5 – Slovakia 2

Czechia struck quickly when Viktor Svancar scored just 1:47 in from Matyas Tomanek and David Byrtus. They doubled the lead late in the first on Jakub Kamas’ tally from David Ripa.

Slovakia got on the board early in the second with a power-play goal from Oliver Ozogany off Lukas Bernat and Adrian Goljer, but Czechia answered with Pavel Tomek’s power-play strike from Filip Novak and Matej Sklenicka.

In the third, Czechia’s special teams stayed hot — Jakub Maxa scored on the power play from Jakub Vanecek and Tomanek, and Kamas added his second of the game from Lukas Kachlir and Novak. Slovakia closed the gap with Matej Lukacik’s late goal from Jakub Rausa and Bernat, but Czechia held on for a 5–2 win.

7th Place

Switzerland 5 – Germany 2

Switzerland came out firing. Noe Rentsch opened the scoring at 7:00 from Tobias Munger, and Caleb Troxler doubled it two minutes later from Levi Bachler and Fabrice Bouvard.

The second period saw Bouvard make it 3–0 just 28 seconds in. Germany responded with Kilian Wolfsteiner’s goal from Alexander Kuhn and Lars Becker, then Becker added one of his own from Eric Michel and Jonas Schwarz.

Switzerland sealed it late — Rentsch scored his second at 19:24 from Munger and Joel Fuhrer, and Silvan Fueter capped the 5–2 win with a goal from Bouvard and Levin Fuhrer just 31 seconds later.

Up Next

With placement games in the books, all eyes now turn to Championship Saturday. Canada and Finland will clash for bronze in Brno — two proud hockey nations looking to leave with hardware after heartbreak in the semis. Then in Trenčín, it’s the showdown everyone’s been waiting for: USA vs. Sweden for gold. The Americans ride momentum after their shootout thriller, while Sweden enters unbeaten, fresh off an overtime classic. One will skate away with glory, the other with silver — and the stage is set for an unforgettable finish to the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.