logo
OilersNation has no direct affiliation to the Edmonton Oilers, Oilers Entertainment Group, NHL, or NHLPA
2026 IIHF World Championship Day 15: Norway stuns Canada for bronze
alt
Ryley Delaney
May 31, 2026, 13:00 EDTUpdated: May 31, 2026, 13:13 EDT
Comments
What a disappointing tournament it was for Canada.
After losing 4-2 to Finland in the semi-finals on Saturday, the Canadians played Norway for the bronze medal on Sunday, the final day of the 2026 IIHF World Championships. Unfortunately, it’s another medal-less year for the Canadians.
Let’s take a look at what happened in the bronze medal game, as well as review how all five Edmonton Oilers performed at this year’s tournament.

Canada vs. Norway

The two teams had already played once in the tournament, with Canada needing to score late to send the game into overtime, where they eventually won 6-5. They then went on to win Group B.
Norway gave the Canadians a run for their money once again. About seven minutes into the first period, Norway’s Emilio Pettersen opened the scoring for the Nordic team. Canadian netminder Jet Greaves misplayed the puck behind the net, allowing Pettersen to bury it.
It went from bad to worse for the Canadians, as Darnell Nurse was on the ice for Norway’s second goal of the game with seven and a half minutes to play in the second period. Stian Solberg, the second Norwegian ever drafted in the first round, took a shot from the point, with it deflecting off Calgary Flames defenceman Zach Whitecloud and past Greaves for a 2-0 lead.
Canada just couldn’t find a way to beat Norwegian netminder Henrik Haukeland, well, that was until there was just 76 seconds left to play. Robert Thomas got the Canadians to within one, but with limited time left on the clock.
Norway missed the gaping cage a few times, and they paid for it in the final seconds when Ryan O’Reilly threw the puck towards the net, with Thomas getting to the puck first on the ensuing scramble. There’s nothing better than Gord Miller calling a game-tying goal from Canada in the final seconds, think Jordan Eberle’s goal at the 2009 World Juniors.
It was all for naught, though, as the Norwegians scored the bronze medal-winning goal. Nurse was tasked with a two-on-one, taking the pass by sliding on his stomach, but Noah Steen’s shot beat Greaves to give Norway their first ever medal at the tournament.
This was undoubtedly a cool moment to cap off a Cinderella run, but it was an incredibly disappointing tournament for the Canadians. Nurse had a rough game, finishing as a -2 over his 18 and a half minutes, but firing eight of Canada’s 46 shots on goal. He also took a goaltender interference penalty, running over Haukeland midway during the third period while Canada was still down two.

Other notes…

As a whole, Nurse finished his tournament with six assists over the 10 games, but finished with a -2 and two penalty minutes. You have to wonder if things would’ve been different if not for Evan Bouchard’s injury, as the right-shot defenceman finished the tournament with a goal and six points in eight games, finishing with a +14. He was easily Canada’s best defenceman at the tournament, and his absence was notable in the final two games.
Isaac Howard scored three goals and four points in eight games, finishing +1. Two of those three goals came against Great Britain, one of the weaker teams in the tournament. It wasn’t the best performance in his senior debut at the international level.
Like Howard and the United States, Mattias Ekholm and Sweden fell in the quarterfinals. Over eight games, the left-shot defenceman scored three goals and five points, finishing the tournament as a +6. It was an underwhelming tournament for the Swedes, but Ekholm had a good performance.
Josh Samanski’s Germany failed to make the playoff round, but it was a good tournament for the left-shot centre. Over his seven games, the 24-year-old finished with two goals and seven points, but had a -3 for the tournament.
With Canada falling in the bronze medal game, no Oilers won a medal in the 2026 IIHF World Championship. It’s all been three years since Canada won a medal, as they won the gold in 2023.
Former Oiler Jesse Puljujärvi will try to win gold in the other medal game, as Finland takes on Switzerland at 12:20 PM MT.

Past recaps

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

ARTICLE PRESENTED BY bet365

Editorials
MORE NEWS. IN YOUR INBOX.
CLICK TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

Breaking News