Switzerland crushed Hungary 9:0 and continued its perfect run at the home World Championship
The Swiss men's national ice hockey team recorded one of the most convincing victories of the World Championship so far, defeating Hungary 9:0 at the Swiss Life Arena in Zurich. The tournament host thereby continued its perfect run in Group A and further strengthened its position among the strongest teams in the competition. According to the official report of the International Ice Hockey Federation, the match was played on May 23, 2026, in the preliminary round, and after six appearances Switzerland had six wins and a goal difference of 35:5. Hungary, on the other hand, remained near the bottom of the group, with three points won and an increasingly difficult task in the closing stage of the first round. The 9:0 result was not only confirmation of the difference in quality, but also an indicator of the depth of the Swiss attack, because players from several attacking lines were among the scorers.
Roman Josi marked the match with a record hat-trick
The central figure of the duel was Swiss captain Roman Josi, who scored three goals and, according to the IIHF report, completed his hat-trick in just four minutes and 45 seconds. He thereby broke the previous record set in 2007 by Canadian Shane Doan, whose hat-trick at the World Championship lasted six minutes and 35 seconds. Josi opened the match with a goal late in the first period, and then at the start of the second period, with two quick goals, he practically directed the game toward a convincing Swiss victory. His performance also had a historical dimension because, according to the IIHF, he reached 53 points in 70 games at World Championships and thereby climbed to third place among the most productive defensemen in the history of that competition. For the Nashville Predators player, it was a match in which individual class, captain's responsibility and the great dominance of the team in front of the home crowd came together.
Josi scored for the first time in the 19th minute, after Switzerland had long been breaking down Hungarian resistance. Hungarian goaltender Adam Vay kept his national team in the game in the first period, and Hungary also managed to overturn one Swiss goal after an offside challenge. Still, at 18:09 Josi opened space for a shot with an individual move and sent the puck behind Vay. Just 29 seconds into the second period, Switzerland took a 2:0 lead, again through Josi, and the captain scored the third goal in a power-play situation. After that, the match entered a rhythm that Hungary could no longer follow.
The second period turned into a Swiss demonstration of strength
The key difference was created in the second period, in which Switzerland scored as many as six goals. According to the official IIHF text, the host has been especially effective at this championship precisely in the middle periods of games, and against Hungary that pattern was the most pronounced. After Josi's goals, Timo Meier, Denis Malgin, Calvin Thurkauf, Sven Andrighetto and, in the closing stage of the match, Simon Knak also found the net. The Hungarian defense struggled to get out of its own third, and the fatigue was additionally visible after the national team had played a match against Germany the previous day. Hungarian forward Istvan Terbocs admitted to the IIHF that against such opponents it is particularly difficult to withstand the pressure in the second period, when the team often remains trapped in the defensive zone and loses energy.
The goaltender change did not stop the Swiss surge. Adam Vay left the goal midway through the second period and was replaced by Bence Balizs, but Hungary did not find stability even after that. Switzerland continued to circle around the Hungarian goal, quickly switch the sides of attack and use every mistake in exiting the zone. Denis Malgin further increased the lead, Andrighetto finished the match with five points, one goal and four assists, while Thurkauf became the 15th Swiss player to score at this tournament. Such a statistic shows well how much the Swiss output did not rely only on one line or several stars, but on the depth of the entire roster.
Leonardo Genoni kept the net untouched
Although Switzerland's attack attracted the most attention, the defensive part of the job was equally convincing. Goaltender Leonardo Genoni saved ten Hungarian shots and achieved his second consecutive 9:0 shutout, after Switzerland had earlier defeated Austria by the same score. The IIHF states that this was Genoni's 14th shutout at World Championships, further strengthening his status as one of the most reliable goaltenders in international hockey. Hungary came closest to a consolation goal in the closing stage, when Marton Nemes had a chance to reduce the deficit, but Genoni stopped that attempt as well. The Swiss goaltender did not have a large number of interventions, but he remained concentrated in the rare moments when Hungary reached more serious chances.
The Swiss defense kept Hungary far from dangerous areas for most of the match. The host pressed high, quickly closed space along the boards and forced the opponent into uncontrolled puck clearances. In such circumstances, Hungary failed to develop longer attacks, and every lost puck opened a new Swiss transition. It was especially important that Switzerland did not lose its game structure even with a high lead. Instead of relaxing, it continued to control the rhythm and thereby prevented any attempt at a Hungarian comeback or at least softening the defeat.
The tournament host confirmed its ambitions before the end of the group stage
The 2026 World Championship is being held from May 15 to 31 in Switzerland, in Zurich and Fribourg, and the home national team plays its Group A matches at the Swiss Life Arena. According to the official competition data, after the victory over Hungary, Switzerland had the maximum 18 points from six matches, while Finland, ahead of the continuation of the schedule, also held the top of the group with a perfect record from five games. That made the Switzerland and Finland duel, announced for the final stage of the preliminary round, a direct battle for first place in the group. For the host, the victory over Hungary was important not only in terms of points, but also psychologically, because it came after a series of convincing performances and confirmed that Switzerland is handling the pressure of organizer and favorite well.
Group A consists of Switzerland, Finland, Austria, Germany, Latvia, the United States of America, Hungary and Great Britain. According to the IIHF standings from May 24, Switzerland led with six wins, while Hungary after five matches was seventh, with one win and four defeats. Such a ranking further increases the importance of Hungary's final matches against the United States of America and Latvia. In a competition system in which every mistake in the closing stage of the group can affect placement and the fight to stay up, the heavy defeat to Switzerland left Hungary with very limited room for repair. Switzerland, on the contrary, further improved its goal difference with this victory and secured a strong starting position for the knockout stage.
Swiss Life Arena as the center of Swiss hockey euphoria
The match was played at the Swiss Life Arena in Zurich, a modern hall that opened in 2022 and is otherwise home to the ZSC Lions. According to available data about the arena, the capacity is around 12,000 spectators, and during the championship the arena is one of the two main venues alongside the BCF Arena in Fribourg. The home atmosphere played an important role in the rhythm of the match, especially after the quick goals in the second period, when the Hungarian defense began to fall apart under pressure. Switzerland played with great energy in that environment, and every new goal additionally raised the atmosphere. For a national team that for years has belonged to the wider circle of medal candidates, playing in front of the home crowd also carries additional responsibility, but the results so far show that the team has turned that pressure into an advantage.
In recent years, Switzerland has built the status of one of the most stable European national teams. In the profile of the Swiss association, the IIHF states that it is a country with developed infrastructure, a large number of registered players and a strong domestic league, which is also reflected in national team results. A team that includes players such as Josi, Meier, Malgin, Andrighetto and Nico Hischier has a combination of NHL experience, speed and technical quality. Against Hungary, that difference was visible in almost every segment: in the speed of decision-making, the precision of passing, movement without the puck and the ability to immediately turn opponent mistakes into goals.
Hungary under pressure after a heavy defeat
For Hungary, the 0:9 defeat was a heavy blow, but also a realistic indicator of the difference compared with one of the strongest national teams in the group. The team showed discipline and sacrifice in the first 20 minutes, but after the first Swiss goal it found it increasingly difficult to find a way to stop the home pressure. The IIHF report conveyed Terbocs's assessment that against top teams every easy chance almost certainly ends with punishment. That is exactly what happened to Hungary: several lost pucks, fatigue in the defensive zone and a lack of time for line changes turned into a series of goals that decided the match already before the end of the second period. In the continuation of the championship, Hungary had to look for points in matches that, by the profile of the opponents, were more directly connected with its goals.
Despite the heavy defeat, it is important for Hungary to maintain competitive structure and avoid an additional drop in confidence. In matches like this, the difference in individual quality often becomes especially visible after the favorite creates a two- or three-goal advantage. Against Switzerland, Hungary tried to block shots and slow the game along the boards, but it did not have enough possession or enough exits from the zone to reduce the pressure on the goaltenders. According to the official schedule, after this encounter it was due to face the United States of America and Latvia, which means there was not much time for recovery. In such a rhythm, the most important thing was to quickly archive the defeat and focus on matches in which a more concrete points return could be sought.
Swiss victory as a message to the competition
The 9:0 victory against Hungary fit into the broader impression that Switzerland is playing on home ice with great confidence and a clear attacking idea. According to IIHF statistics, after six matches it had 35 goals scored and only five conceded, which shows a balance between attacking efficiency and defensive discipline. It is especially impressive that in several games the team broke opponents in the second period, when the depth of the roster and the ability to maintain a high tempo are most often visible. Andrighetto held the top of the tournament scoring standings after the match with 13 points, while Malgin, Meier, Hischier and Josi additionally confirmed that Switzerland has several lines of danger. Such a distribution of output will be decisive in the closing stage, when opponents can tactically prepare for one star, but find it difficult to shut down the entire attacking system.
The match against Hungary was therefore not just a routine victory of the favorite over the outsider. It was confirmation that Switzerland has enough depth, experience and quality to join the fight for the highest placement on equal terms. The host won the match without conceding a goal, with a captain who wrote a record moment and with an attack that showed it can punish from almost every situation. Hungary will have to seek an answer in the final group matches, while Switzerland faces a direct measuring of strength with Finland and then the fight in the knockout stage. After such a performance in Zurich, it is clear that every national team that wants to stop Switzerland will have to find a way to survive its pressure in the middle period and at the same time break through a defense that so far leaves very little space.
Sources:
- IIHF – official report from the Switzerland – Hungary match, data on scorers, Roman Josi's records and the course of the game (link)
- IIHF – official page of the 2026 World Championship, schedule, standings and basic information about the competition (link)
- Hockey Canada – summary of the Hungary – Switzerland match, date, venue, stage of the competition and final score (link)
- IIHF – profile of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation and data on Swiss hockey (link)
- Flashscore News – overview of the 2026 World Championship locations and data on the Swiss Life Arena (link)