2025 World Junior Championship: Switzerland Beats Kazakhstan to Advance to Quarterfinals

Switzerland took the lead early with a power play goal and never looked back, ultimately defeating Kazakhstan 3-1 to secure a spot in the quarterfinals. The stakes were high for both teams, as the loser would be relegated to play Germany in a single-elimination game for survival.

For Kazakhstan, staying at the championship level would be an incredible achievement, given the team is made up of a lot of the guys who qualified for the tournament last year. Their recent momentum—coming off a last-minute overtime loss to Slovakia, where they scored two short-handed goals in the final minutes—gave them hope entering this crucial game.

On the other hand, Switzerland faced mounting pressure. Having played in 39 World Junior tournaments, they were accustomed to success, but this tournament had already proven challenging. The fact that Switzerland has found themselves in this position, playing for their first win, is surprising, looking at their games. They hung in there with a talented Sweden team and lost in a one-goal game to the Slovaks. Their main issue thus far has been scoring goals. 

Switzerland opened the scoring early in the first period with a power play goal from Simon Meier. The Swiss power play ranked second in the tournament, showed its effectiveness as they moved the puck fluidly and worked it to Meier in the bumper spot for a well-executed goal.

Kazakhstan responded quickly, with Kirill Lyapunov, one of their few consistent goal-scorers, netting the equalizer. The game was tied 1-1, and both teams seemed evenly matched as the period wore on.

The score would stay even at one apiece until halfway through the second, when the Swiss would strike again with a sharp-angle shot from captain Robin Antenen.

Kazakhstan goaltender Vladimir Nikitin had a strong performance to keep his team in it, locking down the Swiss offense up close. However, it was a well-placed long shot from the boards that beat him to give Switzerland the 2-1 lead. 

Despite being outshot and facing the pressure of the Swiss power play, Kazakhstan stayed in the game thanks to Nikitin’s continued strong play. However, Switzerland sealed the win with an insurance goal from Ludvig Johnson in the final period, giving them a 3-1 lead that they would not relinquish.

With the victory, Switzerland earned their first win of the tournament and secured a place in the quarterfinals. Kazakhstan, despite showing resilience, will now face Germany in the relegation round on January 2nd at 11:00 AM EST.

For Switzerland, the road to the quarterfinals is a welcome relief, but they will need to improve their scoring if they hope to compete against the winner of the Canada-USA game. Despite the victory, they struggled to generate quality scoring chances, a concern they’ll need to address before their next matchup.