Updated 2026 World Hockey Championship, semi-final schedule after quarter-final results

The knockout stages of the 2026 IIHF Hockey World Championship began on Thursday, with the remaining eight teams in the tournament playing their quarterfinals.

Canada and Finland were the first teams to secure their tickets to the semi-finals, beating the United States and the Czech Republic respectively.

In the second set of quarter-finals, Switzerland defeated Sweden and Norway defeated Latvia to determine the remainder of the semi-final field.

Here’s a complete look at Thursday’s quarter-final results, along with a preview of the semi-finals.

*IIHF World Hockey Championship courtesy of TSN on Instagram.

Quarter-final results/schedule

Finland for sure. Czech Republic, 4-1

Switzerland for sure. Sweden, 3-1

Switzerland vs. Norway (Saturday, May 30 at 9:20 a.m. ET)

Canada vs. Finland (Saturday, May 30 at 2:00 PM ET)

Team USA’s quest to repeat as world champions ended Thursday in a 4-0 quarterfinal loss to rival Canada.

The Canadians got some measure of revenge for falling to the U.S. in the gold medal match at the 2026 Winter Olympics in February, but it was an expected outcome given the talent disparity.

Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk was the only player from the United States Olympic champion team to play in this tournament, while Canada was led by Olympic stars such as Macklin Celebrini and Sidney Crosby, as well as several other major NHL stars.

The 19-year-old Celebrini continued his spectacular play at international level as the San Jose Sharks superstar opened the scoring with a power play goal late in the first period:

Canada continued to apply the pressure in the second period, and it eventually led to a second goal, with St. Louis Blues forward Dylan Holloway beating Calgary Flames and Team USA goalie Devin Cooley.

New Jersey Devils forward Connor Brown and Pittsburgh Penguins legend Crosby scored empty-net goals in the third period, and Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Jet Greaves stopped all 34 shots he faced in Canada’s shutout win.

The only concern for Canada arising from Thursday’s win is the status of defenseman Evan Bouchard, who was injured in the first period and did not return.

Bouchard, who led all NHL defensemen in points this season with 95 as a member of the Edmonton Oilers, hit the ice hard after a high hit by Team USA and Seattle Kraken defenseman Ryan Lindgren.

Lindgren was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct for the hit.

After falling in the quarterfinals at each of the past three IIHF Hockey World Championships, Finland finally returned to the semifinals with a 4-1 victory over the Czech Republic on Thursday.

The Finns came flying out of the gate, scoring twice in the first period and taking a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.

Swiss forward Sakari Manninen, who scored the overtime game winner to beat Canada for gold at the 2022 world championship, opened the scoring Thursday on a feed from former Oilers No. 4 overall draft pick Jesse Puljujärvi:

Panthers forward Anton Lundell extended the lead to 2-0 about seven minutes later, and Buffalo Sabers rookie forward Konsta Helenius made it 3-0 in Finland’s favor early in the second.

The Czechs managed to get on the board about halfway through the second frame when Vancouver Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek scored a power play marker, but Finland remained firmly in control:

AHL forward Lenni Hämeenaho essentially put the game away for Finland in the third inning, scoring with less than five minutes remaining to make it 4-1.

Now, after three consecutive quarter-final appearances, Finland is guaranteed to play for a medal, which was the case in 2019, 2021 and 2022, a stretch in which the Finns won two golds and one silver.

As for the Czechs, they have now faced quarter-finals in three of the past four world championships, with the sole exception of a gold medal in 2024.

Norway’s dream run at the 2026 IIHF Hockey World Championship continued on Thursday with a 2-0 win over Latvia in the quarter-finals.

With the win, Norway secured a finish at the world championships since 1951 when the team finished in fourth place.

The Norwegians have never won a medal at the world championships, but with one more victory they will do so for the first time.

After a scoreless first period, Norway broke through 7:10 into the second period when Swedish Hockey League forward Tinus Luc Koblar scored on a pass from Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, a 2024 first-round pick by the Detroit Red Wings:

Norway held on to a one-goal lead until the final seconds when AHL forward Noah Steen scored an empty-net goal to seal the victory.

Goalkeeper Henrik Haukeland of the German DEL was the undisputed star of the match for Norway, stopping all 34 Latvian shots in a shutout.

To keep the Cinderella streak going, Norway will now be tasked with taking on host country and top-seeded Switzerland in the semi-finals.

Switzerland overcame a 1-0 deficit on Thursday to beat Sweden 3-1 and advance to the semi-finals of the 2026 IIHF Hockey World Championships in front of their home crowd.

The Swiss have been a world power in recent years, winning the silver medal in both 2024 and 2025, but they are still looking for their first ever gold.

Sweden opened the scoring just over six minutes into the game with a goal from Canucks forward Linus Karlsson after New York Islanders forward Emil Heineman found him with a cross-ice pass:

About seven minutes later, Switzerland leveled when longtime Nashville Predators superstar defenseman Roman Josi found the back of the net.

Past the middle of the second period, former NHL forward Denis Malgin scored with a rush up the middle to put the Swiss on top:

It was a lead that Switzerland would never relinquish, as former Columbus Blue Jackets forward Calvin Thürkauf added an insurance goal a few minutes after Malgin’s marker.

Josi finished with three points in the win, and Swiss League goalkeeper Leonardo Genoni stopped 21 of 22 Swedish shots.

With one more win, Switzerland will advance to their third World Cup final in a row, and should be heavily favored to do so against Norway.