The day after tomorrow will see the start of some more interesting games. When the most interesting game at the start of the day on paper is Switzerland vs. Germany, you know that the tournament could be so much better.

Group A: Slovakia 1 vs. Belarus 2 (SO) – Upset alert! They played for 65 minutes but couldn’t settle thing so we needed a shootout. Anything can happen in a shootout and the Belarussians proved. After hanging tough all game, a combination of Andrei Mezin’s goaltending and Oleg Antonenko’s pair of shootout goals gave Belarus the upset victory. Mezin wasn’t strong just in the shootout, he let in only one goal on 32 shots over 65 minutes. Belarus scored first but it took them over half the game to get that goal. Slovakia’s only goal of the game came with less than 3 minutes to go when Marcel Hossa solves the Mezin puzzle. Slovakia will fight for redemption in their next game against Canada while Belarus battles Hungary next.

Group A: Canada 9 vs. Hungary 0 – If ever there was a need for a mercy rule in international hockey, this game would make a strong case. It was never going to be pretty but nobody would have expected this. Canada opened the scoring five munutes in and didn’t let up from there. Hungarian goalie Levente Szuper, who was our first star of Friday’s games when he made 48 saves, was pulled before the halfway mark of the game after letting in 6 goals. Martin St. Louis led the beatdown with a hat-trick and an assist while Shea Weber had a pair of goals. Chris Mason, fresh off being swept by the Vancouver Canucks, made 16 saves for the shutout. Of note is that Scottie Upshall was ejected in the second period for a check to head, the first player ejected in the tournament. Canada closes out the first round against Slovakia while Hungary is looking to get off the schnide against Belarus.

Group A Standings
1. Canada 2-0-0-0, 6 Pts.
2. Slovakia 1-0-1-0, 4 Pts.
3. Belarus 0-1-0-1, 2 Pts.
4. Hungary 0-0-0-2, 0 Pts.

Group B: Switzerland 3 vs. Germany 2 (OT) – I may have mocked this game in the opening but this did live up to its potential. The first game of the tournament to visit extra time didn’t last for long. Mark Streit scored on the power play less than a minute-and-a-half into overtime. It was a back and forth game with Germany getting out front early before falling behind in the second and tying the game shorthanded. The Swiss did keep German goalie Dimitri Patzold busy, peppering him with 38 shots. The Swiss have qualified for the second round robin but finish out against a tough Russian squad. Meanwhile, Germany will face France with the loser going to the relegation pool.

Group B: Russia 7 vs. France 2 – Another game that could only end in a drubbing. The Russians got out front in a hurry with four goals in the first eight minutes. Russia’s pace cooled off from their but the French were never really in it. The Russians were led on the attack by Alex Radulov and Alexei Tereschenko who scored two goals each. The French did test Russian goalie Alexander Eremenko with 25 shots on the day. Russia will take on the host Swiss in their final preliminary round game while France will battle the Germans in a battle of the winless teams.

Group B Standings
1. Russia 2-0-0-0, 6 Pts.
2. Switzerland 1-1-0-0, 5 Pts.
3. Germany 0-0-1-1, 1 Pt.
4. France 0-0-0-2, 0 Pts.

Three Stars of the Day:
1. Martin St. Louis (Canada) – 3 goals, 1 assist
2. Shea Weber (Canada) – 2 goals
3. Andrei Mezin (Belarus) – 31 saves

Monday’s Schedule:
Group C: USA vs. Austria
Group C: Latvia vs. Sweden
Group D: Czech Republic vs. Norway
Group D: Finland vs. Denmark