- Captain Landon DuPont opened the scoring on the power play as Canada beat Slovakia 6-1
- Czechia buried Germany 8-3 and Switzerland outlasted Sweden 7-6 in a 13-goal track meet
- Read below for every Day 2 result and what Wednesday’s group finale means
Landon DuPont did not make Canada wait long on Day 2 of the Hlinka Gretzky Cup.
The Canadian captain opened the scoring on the power play 2:21 into Tuesday’s game against Slovakia at Rogers Place in Edmonton. Canada rolled from there to a 6-1 win that moves the hosts to 2-0 and puts them on top of their group.
Watch DuPont get Canada going:
Slovakia answered in a hurry. Patrik Rychlik beat Leif Oaten just before the five-minute mark to make it 1-1, and that was the last time the game felt close.
Liam Pue restored the lead at 5:12 and later capped the scoring. Kayden Stroeder scored twice in between, Ryerson Edgar chipped in another, and seven Canadians finished with multi-point nights.
Here is the full rundown from Edmonton:
DuPont walked away with two points and control of just about everything else. Steven Ellis of Daily Faceoff called it one of the blueliner’s best international performances to date, pointing to the volume of minutes he ate and the puck control he showed. The Everett Silvertips defender is the projected first overall pick for the 2027 NHL Draft and is headed to Michigan this fall.
Czechia posted the most lopsided result of the day, hanging eight on Germany. Lukas Kachlir picked up four assists a day after scoring twice against the United States, and Petr Hornig closed the night with a pair of power-play goals.
Switzerland and Sweden spent 60 minutes trading haymakers before the Swiss came out the right side of a 7-6 final. The Americans then handled Finland 4-1 in the nightcap to join Canada at 2-0.
- Czechia 8, Germany 3
- Switzerland 7, Sweden 6
- Canada 6, Slovakia 1
- United States 4, Finland 1
Pue has been in the middle of everything since the opener, when he and Gavin Burcar stole the spotlight on Day 1. Two nights later he owns four goals in the tournament.
Canada closes the preliminary round against Sweden on Wednesday at 5 p.m. MT, with the semifinals set for Friday and the medal games on Saturday.
