Slovakia’s men’s national hockey team dropped a 3-5 decision to host Switzerland on Friday, April 17, 2026, in their final preparatory game before the 2026 IIHF World Championship. The match, played in Topoľčany, served as the second meeting between the sides this week, with Switzerland avenging a 1-3 loss from Thursday’s encounter.
According to verified reports from ŠPORT.sk, Slovakia trailed for much of the contest after falling behind 0-2 early in the first period. Herzog opened the scoring for Switzerland at the 15-minute mark, assisted by Haas and Rochette. The visitors doubled their lead just seven minutes later when Herzog notched his second, this time setup by Scherwey and Haas.
Slovakia finally got on the board midway through the second period when Faško-Rudáš scored unassisted at the 26-minute mark to make it 1-2. But, Switzerland responded with three unanswered goals before the second intermission. Herzog completed his hat-trick at the 22nd minute of the period (34th overall), assisted by Scherwey and Haas. Less than a minute later, Loeffel made it 1-4 with Geisser and Hoffmann collecting the assists. Scherwey then extended the lead to 1-5 at the 40-minute mark, assisted by Herzog and Haas.
Facing a four-goal deficit entering the final frame, Slovakia showed signs of life early in the third period. Myklukha cut the deficit to 2-5 at the 42nd minute, assisted by Žiak and Faith. Valach then made it 3-5 just three minutes later at the 45th minute, assisted by Myklukha and Petrovský. Despite the late push, Slovakia could not complete the comeback as Switzerland held on for the 3-5 victory.
The game featured no penalties for either side, with both teams recording zero power-play opportunities. Slovakia went 0-for-0 on the man advantage although Switzerland too failed to convert any of their power-play chances. Both teams were equally disciplined in shorthanded situations, recording zero goals allowed while killing penalties.
Head coach Vladimír Országh confirmed that Slovakia will next face Germany in a pair of preparatory games. The first meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Kaufbeuren, followed by a rematch three days later in Augsburg on Sunday, April 26, 2026.
This result concludes Slovakia’s pre-tournament schedule ahead of the 2026 IIHF World Championship, which runs from May 15 to May 31 in Switzerland. The tournament will be hosted across two venues: Swiss Life Arena in Zürich and BCF Arena in Fribourg. Slovakia has been placed in Group B for the preliminary round, with all group-stage games set to be played in Fribourg.
As defending champions, the United States enter the tournament as favorites after ending a 65-year gold medal drought at the 2025 edition. Slovakia, meanwhile, aims to improve upon their 11th-place finish from last year’s championship and secure a berth in the quarterfinals for the first time since 2015.
The Slovak roster for these preparatory games featured 11 forwards, with goaltender Denis Godla starting in net. Rabčan was confirmed as the backup goaltender for the Friday contest, though he did not see any action as Godla played the full 60 minutes.
With the preparatory schedule now complete, Slovakia will turn its full focus to the World Championship opener against Latvia on May 15, 2026, at Swiss Life Arena in Zürich. The puck is scheduled to drop at 16:20 local time (14:20 UTC).
What are your thoughts on Slovakia’s preparations heading into the 2026 IIHF World Championship? Share your predictions for Group B and the tournament outlook in the comments below.
