Norway couldn't hold off Germany at the 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship and went down to defeat for the third consecutive Group B game in Herning, Denmark.
photo: PHOTO: © INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION / MATT ZAMBONIN
Germany scored two first-period goals and marched on to a solid 5-2 win over Norway at the 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship on Tuesday. Coach Harold Kreis's boys have racked up three straight wins in Herning.
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 intercepted the puck at the point and put it toward the net for Stutzle’s tip before Ehliz banged the puck into the gaping cage.
Norway picked up its pace, but Grubauer was dialed-in during pressure around his crease.
At 16:10, Michaelis validated the classic advice to go to to the net and keep your stick on the ice. He did just that and was perfectly placed to backhand in Ehliz’s cross-ice feed on the rush for a 2-0 lead.
Late in the first period, Norway got new life from a power play with German captain Moritz Seider off for holding. Martinsen snapped a shot from the high slot that bulged the twine, set up by newly added Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, to cut the deficit to 2-1 at 19:50.
Lilleberg praised Brandsegg-Nygard, the 2024 first-round pick of the Detroit Red Wings who played for Skelleftea this season: "He came in and did a really good job today. He makes our PP better, and it's fun to watch.
In the second period, Germany regained control of the game with two quick goals. At 4:56, Stachowiak made it 3-1, converting a Kahun feed from behind the net as Arntzen was unable to seal off his right post. Less than two minutes later, Samanski made no mistake when he one-timed Lukas Reichel's pass on the rush.
"It was made pretty easy for me by Lukas," said Samanski. "He finds me there and I just had to put it on that open net."
The Norwegians didn't just roll over in the third period. German defenders were caught watching the puck and reaching with their sticks when Berglund scored to cap off a sequence of in-tight passes at 7:07.
Hopes of a dramatic late Norwegian comeback, though, faded as Martinsen and Patrick Elvsveen took overlapping minors with under five minutes remaining. Tiffels gave the vocal German fans another reason to whoop it up when he potted the empty-netter with 17 seconds left.
Germany’s all-time WM record versus Norway rises to nine wins and five losses dating back to 1938.
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 intercepted the puck at the point and put it toward the net for Stutzle’s tip before Ehliz banged the puck into the gaping cage.
Norway picked up its pace, but Grubauer was dialed-in during pressure around his crease.
At 16:10, Michaelis validated the classic advice to go to to the net and keep your stick on the ice. He did just that and was perfectly placed to backhand in Ehliz’s cross-ice feed on the rush for a 2-0 lead.
Late in the first period, Norway got new life from a power play with German captain Moritz Seider off for holding. Martinsen snapped a shot from the high slot that bulged the twine, set up by newly added Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, to cut the deficit to 2-1 at 19:50.
Lilleberg praised Brandsegg-Nygard, the 2024 first-round pick of the Detroit Red Wings who played for Skelleftea this season: "He came in and did a really good job today. He makes our PP better, and it's fun to watch.
In the second period, Germany regained control of the game with two quick goals. At 4:56, Stachowiak made it 3-1, converting a Kahun feed from behind the net as Arntzen was unable to seal off his right post. Less than two minutes later, Samanski made no mistake when he one-timed Lukas Reichel's pass on the rush.
"It was made pretty easy for me by Lukas," said Samanski. "He finds me there and I just had to put it on that open net."
The Norwegians didn't just roll over in the third period. German defenders were caught watching the puck and reaching with their sticks when Berglund scored to cap off a sequence of in-tight passes at 7:07.
Hopes of a dramatic late Norwegian comeback, though, faded as Martinsen and Patrick Elvsveen took overlapping minors with under five minutes remaining. Tiffels gave the vocal German fans another reason to whoop it up when he potted the empty-netter with 17 seconds left.
Germany’s all-time WM record versus Norway rises to nine wins and five losses dating back to 1938.
Norway vs Germany - 2025 IIHF WM
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