Sweden whoops it up after opening the scoring in the first period of a 4-0 victory over Japan at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.
photo: © INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION / ANDRE RINGUETTE
With a solid 4-0 win over Japan, the Swedish women wrapped up their preliminary round on Tuesday with a perfect Group B record. They will face the third-place team in Group A – either the Czechs or the Swiss – in the 2026 Olympic quarter-finals. Japan's tournament ends with one win and three losses.
Josefin Bouveng stepped up with a goal and an assist, and Hanna Thuvik, Mira Hallin, and Hanna Olsson also scored for Sweden. Blueliner Maja Nylen Persson added two assists.
"I like that we closed out the group with a win and we played hard for each other," said fellow blueliner Jenna Raunio. "It was a good game."
Captain Anna Kjellbin talked about Sweden's potential quarter-final opponents: "I would say that the Czechs are a really skilled team and also pretty physical. Switzerland plays a little bit differently. They have [Lara] Stalder and [Alina] Muller up front, and you've got to watch out for them. But we've played the Euro Tour a couple of times over the season before going into the Olympics or Women's Worlds, so we're familiar with both of them."
The Swedes outshot Japan 31-20 and were simply more on the ball in all aspects.
Swedish starter Ebba Svensson Traff earned her first Olympic shutout. The 21-year-old Linkoping goalie was back in after ceding place to Emma Soderberg for the 4-0 win over France.
Svensson Traff praised her defence corps' diligence: "They are really good, helping me very much with the loose pucks and rebounds and sticks."
Securing top spot in Group B is important. It means coach Ulf Lundberg's squad will not have to face the defending Olympic champion Canadians or the reigning world champion Americans in the quarter-finals. Sweden is seeking its first Olympic medal since the Cinderella run to silver in Turin 2006.
The Japanese, coming off a shocking 3-2 loss to host Italy, had to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. Instead, with two points in Group B, they finish ninth, surpassing only France.
"It's a tough loss," said Japanese assistant captain Akane Hosoyamada. "I guess our Olympic journey ends here. It's heartbreaking, but I'm really proud of this group."
Their demise stems from an inability to play the proverbial full 60 minutes in Milan. There have been more mental mistakes and miscues than usual from coach Yuji Iizuka's team, which came seventh at the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Czechia. The Japanese also didn't get to the prime scoring areas often enough.
A notable omission from Japan's lineup was netminder Miyuu Masuhara. The 24-year-old has carried the load in net for Japan since the 2022 IIHF Women’s World Championship, but struggled in Milan with a 3.50 GAA and 86.7 save percentage. Goalie Riko Kawaguchi, who played the last two periods in the 5-2 loss to Germany, got her first Olympic start.
The Swedes drew first blood at 5:25. Off a faceoff in Japan's end, the defenders mishandled the puck in the middle of the ice and Thuvik whacked a rebound from Sara Hjalmarsson’s shot past Kawaguchi. The Brynas forward has scored two games in a row.
Moments after Japanese ace Rui Ukita misfired on a rebound on the rush with a gaping net, Kanami Seki was penalized for a high cross-check on Lisa Johansson in front of Japan’s net. On the power play, Olsson hit the iron with a rising wrister.
In the second period, Bouveng doubled the Swedish lead at 5:36, taking a fantastic stretch pass from Raunio and streaking in from left wing to beat the Japanese goalie high on the stick side.
"I got the puck and I was skating backwards," Raunio explained. "Then I saw the line to Bouveng and I just passed it."
When Japan's Mei Miura busted down the wing to unleash a high shot, Svensson Traff was equal to the challenge with a shoulder save.
With 2:30 left in the middle frame, Sweden went up 3-0 on a broken play off the rush. Bouveng cut in off the right side, but the puck slipped off her stick as she went to the forehand and Kawaguchi tried to push it away with her stick. Unfortunately, it went right to Hallin, who made no mistake.
At 1:06 of the third period, Olsson put the game out of reach with a power play goal, whipping a high wrister past the kneeling Japanese goalie.
Chants of "Nippon!" echoed encouragingly as the clock ticked down, but Japan couldn't break Svensson Treff's goose egg. With under 14 minutes to play, IIzuka replaced Kawaguchi with third-string goalie Rei Hollaron to get her a taste of Olympic action.
Any way you slice it, this is disappointing for Asia’s top hockey nation. It is their lowest placement in five Olympic stints dating back to the inaugural women's hockey tournament in Nagano (1998, 2014, 2018, 2022).
"We got better, but the other countries are getting better too," Hosoyamada said. "So we need to step up our game even harder."
Historically, Sweden has dominated Japan head-to-head. But these games are usually tight, and the gap has narrowed in recent years. In fact, the Japanese won the last two Olympic encounters, 2-1 in overtime in 2018 and 3-1 in 2022. At the Women’s Worlds, Japan has beaten Sweden three times (2015, 2019, 2022) in 11 encounters.
Josefin Bouveng stepped up with a goal and an assist, and Hanna Thuvik, Mira Hallin, and Hanna Olsson also scored for Sweden. Blueliner Maja Nylen Persson added two assists.
"I like that we closed out the group with a win and we played hard for each other," said fellow blueliner Jenna Raunio. "It was a good game."
Captain Anna Kjellbin talked about Sweden's potential quarter-final opponents: "I would say that the Czechs are a really skilled team and also pretty physical. Switzerland plays a little bit differently. They have [Lara] Stalder and [Alina] Muller up front, and you've got to watch out for them. But we've played the Euro Tour a couple of times over the season before going into the Olympics or Women's Worlds, so we're familiar with both of them."
The Swedes outshot Japan 31-20 and were simply more on the ball in all aspects.
Swedish starter Ebba Svensson Traff earned her first Olympic shutout. The 21-year-old Linkoping goalie was back in after ceding place to Emma Soderberg for the 4-0 win over France.
Svensson Traff praised her defence corps' diligence: "They are really good, helping me very much with the loose pucks and rebounds and sticks."
Securing top spot in Group B is important. It means coach Ulf Lundberg's squad will not have to face the defending Olympic champion Canadians or the reigning world champion Americans in the quarter-finals. Sweden is seeking its first Olympic medal since the Cinderella run to silver in Turin 2006.
The Japanese, coming off a shocking 3-2 loss to host Italy, had to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. Instead, with two points in Group B, they finish ninth, surpassing only France.
"It's a tough loss," said Japanese assistant captain Akane Hosoyamada. "I guess our Olympic journey ends here. It's heartbreaking, but I'm really proud of this group."
Their demise stems from an inability to play the proverbial full 60 minutes in Milan. There have been more mental mistakes and miscues than usual from coach Yuji Iizuka's team, which came seventh at the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Czechia. The Japanese also didn't get to the prime scoring areas often enough.
A notable omission from Japan's lineup was netminder Miyuu Masuhara. The 24-year-old has carried the load in net for Japan since the 2022 IIHF Women’s World Championship, but struggled in Milan with a 3.50 GAA and 86.7 save percentage. Goalie Riko Kawaguchi, who played the last two periods in the 5-2 loss to Germany, got her first Olympic start.
The Swedes drew first blood at 5:25. Off a faceoff in Japan's end, the defenders mishandled the puck in the middle of the ice and Thuvik whacked a rebound from Sara Hjalmarsson’s shot past Kawaguchi. The Brynas forward has scored two games in a row.
Moments after Japanese ace Rui Ukita misfired on a rebound on the rush with a gaping net, Kanami Seki was penalized for a high cross-check on Lisa Johansson in front of Japan’s net. On the power play, Olsson hit the iron with a rising wrister.
In the second period, Bouveng doubled the Swedish lead at 5:36, taking a fantastic stretch pass from Raunio and streaking in from left wing to beat the Japanese goalie high on the stick side.
"I got the puck and I was skating backwards," Raunio explained. "Then I saw the line to Bouveng and I just passed it."
When Japan's Mei Miura busted down the wing to unleash a high shot, Svensson Traff was equal to the challenge with a shoulder save.
With 2:30 left in the middle frame, Sweden went up 3-0 on a broken play off the rush. Bouveng cut in off the right side, but the puck slipped off her stick as she went to the forehand and Kawaguchi tried to push it away with her stick. Unfortunately, it went right to Hallin, who made no mistake.
At 1:06 of the third period, Olsson put the game out of reach with a power play goal, whipping a high wrister past the kneeling Japanese goalie.
Chants of "Nippon!" echoed encouragingly as the clock ticked down, but Japan couldn't break Svensson Treff's goose egg. With under 14 minutes to play, IIzuka replaced Kawaguchi with third-string goalie Rei Hollaron to get her a taste of Olympic action.
Any way you slice it, this is disappointing for Asia’s top hockey nation. It is their lowest placement in five Olympic stints dating back to the inaugural women's hockey tournament in Nagano (1998, 2014, 2018, 2022).
"We got better, but the other countries are getting better too," Hosoyamada said. "So we need to step up our game even harder."
Historically, Sweden has dominated Japan head-to-head. But these games are usually tight, and the gap has narrowed in recent years. In fact, the Japanese won the last two Olympic encounters, 2-1 in overtime in 2018 and 3-1 in 2022. At the Women’s Worlds, Japan has beaten Sweden three times (2015, 2019, 2022) in 11 encounters.
Japan vs Sweden - 2026 Women's Olympic Games
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