Sweden retains champion's title winning 2018 Ice Hockey World Championship

COPENHAGEN. KAZINFORM The Swedish national ice hockey team retained their world champion's title defeating team Switzerland with 3-2 shootout win in the final of the 2018 (IIHF) International Ice Hockey World Championship, held this year in Denmark. 

This was the second encounter between Sweden and Switzerland in the finals of the IIHF World Championships and was also the third time ever for Switzerland to reach the final game, TASS reports.

Both teams met at the 2013 IIHF World Championship in Stockholm, where the Swedes enjoyed a confident 5-1 win over Switzerland on home ice.

It was not so simple for the Tre Kronor this year and the score in the final match on Sunday night at the stadium in Copenhagen was opened in the first period by Switzerland's Nino Niederreiter, but Sweden was quick to answer with a goal from Gustav Nyquist to tie the score at 1-1.
Switzerland scored again in the middle period with a goal by Timo Meier, but Tre Kronor tied the score again with a shot delivered into the Swiss net by Mika Zibanejad.

The score of 2-2 remained unchanged in the third period as well as throughout the ensuing 20-minute stretch of the play in overtime.
Reigning champions were better on the shootout scoring two goals against Switzerland's one out of five attempts on behalf of each opponent.
Team Sweden wins the world championship for the second year in a row as at the 2017 IIHF World Championship they defeated team Canada 2-1 also in the shootout duel. In all, Sweden are 11-time IIHF World Champions.

In the match for the bronze earlier in the day, team USA blazed by Canada with a confident 4-1 victory.
The 2019 IIHF World Championship will be hosted by Slovakia between May 10 and 26 in the cities of Bratislava and Kosice.