USA Defeats Sweden in Overtime – World Championship Quarterfinal

The United States advanced to the quarterfinals of the Olympic hockey tournament on Wednesday, defeating Sweden 2-1 in overtime.

The game remained scoreless until the 32nd minute, when Dylan Larkin redirected a shot from Jack Hughes, giving the Americans a 1-0 lead.

With time winding down in regulation, Sweden pulled their goaltender for an extra attacker, and Mika Zibanejad scored to tie the game 1-1 with just 91 seconds remaining.

Quinn Hughes secured the victory for Team USA just four minutes into overtime, scoring against Jacob Markström. Quinn Hughes too assisted on the first goal of the game, finishing with two points on the night.

US goaltender Connor Hellebuyck was stellar, stopping 28 of 29 shots faced, while Markström made 38 saves on 40 shots for Sweden.

Earlier on Wednesday, Slovakia dominated Germany with a 6-2 win in the first quarterfinal matchup.

Canada also needed overtime, rallying from a 2-3 deficit to defeat Czechia 4-3.

Finland completed the quarterfinal slate with a 3-2 overtime victory over Switzerland, overcoming a 0-2 deficit to advance.

Latvia finished tenth in the tournament after a 1-5 loss to Sweden in the playoff round.

This year’s Olympic tournament marks the return of National Hockey League (NHL) players after a 12-year absence.

Finland won the previous Olympic hockey tournament.