Yasin Ehliz, Marc Michaelis scored a goal and an assist apiece for Germany. Wojciech Stachowiak, Joshua Samanski, and Frederik Tiffels chipped in singles.
“I thought it was a hard-fought game, but we came out with the win,” said Samanski. “A big win, I’ve got to say! Now we’re 3-0 and looking forward to the next game in two days.”
Tim Stutzle, who suited up for his first game of this IIHF WM, had an immediate impact alongside Ehliz and Michaelis. The 23-year-old Ottawa Senators ace registered two assists, as did Dominik Kahun. Stutzle had 79 regular season points and added five more in Ottawa’s first-round exit versus the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“Obviously, with the calibre of player he is, he’s making a difference on the ice, and he’s a good guy to have in the locker room,” Samanski said. “We’re really excited to have him.”
Andreas Martinsen and Jacob Berglund scored for Norway, which is winless through three games. The Polar Bears are treading the fine line between consistency and stagnation. The last time Norway finished higher than 11th (as in 2024) at an Ice Hockey World Championship was in 2016 (10th).
“I think we played well sometimes, but we had too many turnovers, so we lost the game,” said Norwegian captain Emil Lilleberg.
German starting goalie Philipp Grubauer won his duel with Norway’s Jonas Arntzen as shots favoured the Norwegians 31-30.
Facing lower-ranked teams, the Germans – who won their first WM silver medal in 50 years in 2023 – have performed up to expectations in the early going. But now confrontations with the Group B medal contenders are looming, starting with a grudge match with neighbouring Switzerland on Thursday.
“I think it’s going to be a hard battle as well,” said German assistant captain Jonas Muller. “Today was a hard-fought game. I think we showed that we can play that game and we’re looking forward to that game against Switzerland.”
The Norwegians were eager to get out of a rut after posting back-to-back 2-1 losses to Kazakhstan and world champion Czechia. But it wasn’t meant to be despite a worthy effort. Coach Tobias Johansson’s troops will try their luck again versus the Americans on Wednesday.
At 4:51, Ehliz made it 1-0. The play resulted from a botched Norwegian breakout, as Michaelis…
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