There were three Oilers in action. Isaac Howard’s USA took on Latvia, falling 4-2, Mattias Ekholm’s Sweden fell 3-2 to Norway, and Josh Samanski’s Germany defeated Austria 6-2. It’s bad news for the Americans, as they are on the cusp of being eliminated from the playoff round.

Let’s take a look at what went on in Saturday’s slate of games.

United States vs. Latvia

The Americans were looking to turn their tournament around with a matchup against Latvia. They were unable to achieve that. The lone scoring in the first period belonged to Latvia’s Haralds Egle, but Matthew Tkachuk tied it at one late in the second period.

Latvia took a 2-1 lead six minutes into the third period, then buried an empty netter with 62 seconds left. I’m sure the Americans regret that pull, as Mathieu Olivier scored for the Americans just 11 seconds later. Once again, Latvia buried an empty netter for a 4-2 victory.

As for Howard, it was a quiet game for the Oiler. He played just over 10 minutes, with only Max Plante playing fewer minutes in this game. He still managed to fire two shots and was an even 0 in terms of plus/minus, but he didn’t get much of an opportunity to make an impact. Which is a shame, as Howard leads the team in goals and is tied with Olivier for points.

Germany vs. Austria

Later in the day, Germany’s Josh Samanski had his best game of the tournament in their 6-2 victory over Austria.

Two minutes into the second period, Leon Wallner opened the game’s scoring, putting Austria up 1-0. However, the Germans fired back a little over a minute later, as Samanski picked up an assist on Lukas Reichel’s goal. With seven to play in the second, Samanski scored his first goal of the tournament.

Steven Ellis

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Josh Samanski with a goal - and second point of the night - makes it 2-1 Germany. #MensWorlds

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7:34 PM · May 23, 2026

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That line scored Germany’s third goal of the game, as Reichel beat the Austrian netminder about six minutes into the third period. Germany then made it 4-1, before Austria cut that lead in half. But Reichel completed the hat trick midway through third to give the Germans a 5-2 lead. The win was capped off by Alexander Ehl’s goal with five to play.

Samanski played 19 and a half minutes for Germany, picking up a goal and two assists, and finishing the game as a +2. The Oilers centre fired two shots on goal and lost 13 of the 23 faceoffs he took (43.5 per cent). Samanski now has a goal and five points in eight games this tournament.

Sweden vs. Norway

Sweden had a disappointing result on Saturday, falling 3-2 to the Norwegians in Group B action. As he’s done throughout the tournament, Noah Steen scored, opening the scoring midway through the first.

Top draft prospect Ivar Stenberg tied the game early in the second, but Steen scored again to restore Norway’s lead. Again, the Swedes tied it thanks to Lucas Raymond’s goal three minutes into the third, but Norwegian forward Eirik Salsten’s goal midway through the third held up as the game-winner.

As for Ekholm, the left-shot defenceman played about 19 and a half minutes, firing three shots on goal and finishing as an even 0. With no points in this game, Ekholm has three goals and four points in six games this tournament.

Other notes…

It’s getting to that point in the tournament where watching the standings is a must. The top four teams in each of the groups make the playoff rounds. If the tournament were to end today, only Canada and Germany would be in the playoff rounds.

It’s been a disappointing tournament for the Americans, who came into it as the reigning gold medalists. After defeating Switzerland for the gold last year, the Americans opened their tournament with a loss in the rematch, and it’s been downhill since. Picking up one regulation win, one overtime win, and losing four times.

Through five of the seven games, the Americans have just five points, which is good enough for sixth in the group. With just two games left, one against Hungary and one against Austria. The Americans should be able to win both those games in regulation, which would give them 11 points, but they’ll still need help.

Sweden also sits on the outside looking in. They have three regulation wins in their six games play, giving them nine points for fifth in Group B. Their final game against Slovakia is a must-win in regulation, as it would leapfrog them over the Slovaks. They aren’t out yet, but the loss to Norway was a tough one.

Germany holds onto the final spot in Group A, but have played six of their seven games. That final game, against Great Britain, should be a regulation victory, but Latvia and the US are right on their tail.

As for Canada, unless they fall in regulation to Czechia and Slovakia, while Norway wins their final two games in regulation, they’ll be in the playoff round. They’re all but certain to be playing for a medal, but both Slovakia and Czechia have a realistic shot of winning the group.

There were three other games on Saturday. Denmark defeated Slovenia 4-0, Switzerland smashed the Hungarians 9-0, and Czechia defeated Slovakia 3-2.

Moreover, there’ll be two Oilers in action, as Canadians Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard take on Slovakia at 12:20 p.m. MT. Finland plays Austria at the same time, while Latvia takes on Great Britain and Italy takes on Denmark, with both games starting at 8:20 a.m. MT.

USA returns to action on Monday, taking on Hungary at 8:20 a.m. MT. Later that day in group A action, Germany faces Great Britain in their final game of the tournament. Sweden’s next and final game is against Slovakia on Tuesday at 8:20 a.m. MT.