Team USA moved to 2-0-0-0 at the 2026 IIHF World Under-20 Championship with a 2–1 win over Switzerland on Thursday night in St. Paul, collecting a second straight regulation victory and six points with two games remaining in pool play.
After a scoreless first period, the Americans broke through early in the second. At 1:12, Brodie Ziemer made it 1-0, finishing a play set up by James Hagens and Will Horcoff.
A frightening moment followed with 8:59 remaining in the second, when defenseman Cole Hutson was struck in the head by a puck and had to be stretchered off the ice. Hutson is reported to be out of the hospital, but his status for the remainder of the tournament remains unclear.
That play and extended stoppage shifted momentum in the game. Switzerland tied the game at 12:34 of the second when Basile Sansonnens scored. And on the ensuing face-off, the Swiss sprung a player for a breakaway forcing goaltender Nicholas Kempf to make a fantastic stop. That save switched the momentum back and the U.S. answered at 14:40, when Will Zellers scored the eventual game-winner, scoring from a near-impossible angle to make it 2-1.
Degree of difficulty: 💯
Will Zellers sniped this goal from a CRAZY angle! #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/E4k2eC76m1
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 28, 2025
The third period played out as low event and without a goal, with the U.S. protecting the one-goal cushion through the final minutes. Switzerland pulled its goaltender for an extra attacker in the game’s closing minutes, but the Americans held on through the late push to close out the regulation win.
The result gives the U.S. a perfect start in pool play at 2-0-0-0 (six points), with two games remaining before the quarterfinal round. Team USA will have Sunday off before facing Slovakia on Wednesday, leading up to a New Year’s Eve tilt with Sweden.