The United States has reached the international hockey mountain top for the first time in nearly a century.
Team USA defeated Switzerland 1-0 on Sunday to earn its first gold medal at an IIHF World Championship in 92 years (1993).
Buffalo Sabres star forward Tage Thompson buried the game-winning goal for the Stars and Stripes past Swiss goaltender Leonardo Genoni two minutes and two seconds into the three-on-three overtime period.
Utah Mammoth forward Logan Cooley fed Thompson the puck in the neutral zone and then joined the big centerman for a rush up ice. Thompson then broke the scoreless deadlock with a wicked snap shot over Genoni’s shoulder.
Sunday’s victory at Avicii Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, was a historic moment for the American program. Not only did they win gold for the first time in 92 years, but they were also participating in their first gold medal game at the competition in 91 years (1934). The gold is just the team’s second-ever at a World Championship.
The Americans assembled the youngest team in the tournament, led by San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky (37 years old). They now hold the distinction of being the youngest squad ever to win gold (average age of 24.48 years).
After the victory, the team’s leadership group accepted the championship trophy from IIHF President Luc Tardif. They draped Johnny Gaudreau’s jersey over the trophy as they posed for a photo. Gaudreau played in the 2024 World Championship for Team USA before being tragically killed just months later by an alleged drunk driver.
Washington Capitals prospect Cole Hutson, 18, was one of five players added to Team USA’s roster shortly before the beginning of the tournament, but he only saw the ice in one pre-tourney tune-up game. It’s unclear if he’ll receive a medal. He would’ve been the youngest player on the roster for Team USA, but instead, goalie Hampton Slukynsky, 19, took that honor.
For the Swiss, it marked yet another heartbreak in their history. Sunday’s matchup was their fourth gold medal game loss in the last 13 years (2013, 2018, 2024, 2025). They had defeated the Americans 3-0 earlier in the tournament.
They’ll hope to rebound and attempt to lift the trophy on home soil as the 2026 edition of the tournament will be hosted in Zurich and Fribourg.
This year’s gold medal game was the second consecutive not to feature Team Canada, as Denmark eliminated them in the quarterfinals. Since 2018, only three World Championship finals have excluded the Canadians, who have accrued the most medals all time (28 gold, 16 silver, 9 bronze).
