John Tavares (#91) scored the crucial opening goal for Canada versus Sweden and joins Ryan O'Reilly (#90) as one of the prolific NHL faceoff men at the 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.
photo: PHOTO: © INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION / MATT ZAMBONIN
The 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship is just getting started, but there are already some interesting statistics, historical figures, and other numerical trends to keep track of. Let’s take a look at how things are adding up in Zurich and Fribourg.
First goals matter – a lot
Sometimes when commentators pontificate about “the all-important first goal,” it’s eye-rolling time. But through two days and 10 games, it’s absolutely correct. The team that scored first on Friday or Saturday won every game. The biggest surprise, of course, was Slovenia, which drew first blood in a 3-2 overtime victory that marked the first time in six tries it has ever beaten the Czechs.
This is a not a sustainable trend. But it’s a good reminder that hockey – like life – comes at you fast. Be ready.
Cervenka climbs all-time games played list
Provided Czech captain Roman Cervenka stays healthy, he is poised to move into third place all-time among players who have appeared in the most World Championship games.
After Saturday’s action, the 40-year-old HC Dynamo Pardubice forward, questing for his third world title, has played 105 WM games. If he appears in all five of Czechia’s remaining preliminary round games, “Cervus” can tie the USSR’s Alexander Maltsev (110 games) for third place. He would then take sole possession of third if Czechia is in the playoffs.
Cervenka has plenty more work to do if he wants to catch the all-time leader, Switzerland’s Andres Ambuhl (151 games), or even the second-place man, Germany’s Udo Kiessling (119 games).
NHL faceoff workhorses hit Swiss ice
This year’s tournament features a disproportionate number of players who are trusted to take draws for their NHL clubs. Four out of the top 10 most frequent NHL faceoff-takers from 2019-20 to 2025-26 – each having played about 500 games in that span – are skating in Zurich and Fribourg.
The list includes Canada’s Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh: #1 with 10,501 faceoffs taken), Canada’s Ryan O’Reilly (Nashville: #4 with 9,449 faceoffs taken), Switzerland’s Nico Hischier (New Jersey: #5 with 9,369 faceoffs taken), and Canada’s John Tavares (Toronto: #10 with 8,607 faceoffs taken).
Could that traditional strength tilt the ice in Canada’s favour as these Worlds progress? Stay tuned.
Genoni boosts unbelievable save percentage
After making 19 saves in the opening 3-1 win over the defending champion U.S., Swiss starting netminder Leonardo Genoni boasts a sparkling 95.0 save percentage. And to say that the 38-year-old EV Zug veteran is “defying the odds” or “laughing at Father Time” is to understate his overall body of World Championship work.
Over 49 games dating back to 2011, Genoni has a career save percentage of 93.3. It is third-best all-time among goalies with a minimum of 20 World Championship games played, trailing only Czechia’s Tomas Vokoun (94.2) and the USSR’s Vladimir Myshkin (93.8). It puts Genoni ahead of former Vezina Trophy winners like Pekka Rinne (92.8), Sergei Bobrovsky (92.7), and Henrik Lundqvist (91.1).
Genoni – who was named Best Goalie and MVP last year when Switzerland won its second straight silver medal – might yet take his save percentage to new heights on home ice. That would buck the trend in the NHL, where the average save percentage fell below 90.0 this year (89.6) for the first time since 1995-96 (89.8).
First goals matter – a lot
Sometimes when commentators pontificate about “the all-important first goal,” it’s eye-rolling time. But through two days and 10 games, it’s absolutely correct. The team that scored first on Friday or Saturday won every game. The biggest surprise, of course, was Slovenia, which drew first blood in a 3-2 overtime victory that marked the first time in six tries it has ever beaten the Czechs.
This is a not a sustainable trend. But it’s a good reminder that hockey – like life – comes at you fast. Be ready.
Cervenka climbs all-time games played list
Provided Czech captain Roman Cervenka stays healthy, he is poised to move into third place all-time among players who have appeared in the most World Championship games.
After Saturday’s action, the 40-year-old HC Dynamo Pardubice forward, questing for his third world title, has played 105 WM games. If he appears in all five of Czechia’s remaining preliminary round games, “Cervus” can tie the USSR’s Alexander Maltsev (110 games) for third place. He would then take sole possession of third if Czechia is in the playoffs.
Cervenka has plenty more work to do if he wants to catch the all-time leader, Switzerland’s Andres Ambuhl (151 games), or even the second-place man, Germany’s Udo Kiessling (119 games).
NHL faceoff workhorses hit Swiss ice
This year’s tournament features a disproportionate number of players who are trusted to take draws for their NHL clubs. Four out of the top 10 most frequent NHL faceoff-takers from 2019-20 to 2025-26 – each having played about 500 games in that span – are skating in Zurich and Fribourg.
The list includes Canada’s Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh: #1 with 10,501 faceoffs taken), Canada’s Ryan O’Reilly (Nashville: #4 with 9,449 faceoffs taken), Switzerland’s Nico Hischier (New Jersey: #5 with 9,369 faceoffs taken), and Canada’s John Tavares (Toronto: #10 with 8,607 faceoffs taken).
Could that traditional strength tilt the ice in Canada’s favour as these Worlds progress? Stay tuned.
Genoni boosts unbelievable save percentage
After making 19 saves in the opening 3-1 win over the defending champion U.S., Swiss starting netminder Leonardo Genoni boasts a sparkling 95.0 save percentage. And to say that the 38-year-old EV Zug veteran is “defying the odds” or “laughing at Father Time” is to understate his overall body of World Championship work.
Over 49 games dating back to 2011, Genoni has a career save percentage of 93.3. It is third-best all-time among goalies with a minimum of 20 World Championship games played, trailing only Czechia’s Tomas Vokoun (94.2) and the USSR’s Vladimir Myshkin (93.8). It puts Genoni ahead of former Vezina Trophy winners like Pekka Rinne (92.8), Sergei Bobrovsky (92.7), and Henrik Lundqvist (91.1).
Genoni – who was named Best Goalie and MVP last year when Switzerland won its second straight silver medal – might yet take his save percentage to new heights on home ice. That would buck the trend in the NHL, where the average save percentage fell below 90.0 this year (89.6) for the first time since 1995-96 (89.8).