Lenni Hameenaho (#92) scored twice in Finland's 6-2 victory over the United States at the 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.
photo: PHOTO: © INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION / ANDRE RINGUETTE
The Finnish Lions are roaring. Lenni Hameenaho sparked the attack with two goals and an assist in a 6-2 thumping of the defending champion Americans on Monday. Coach Antti Pennanen's team improves to 3-0 in Group A.
Final shots were 32-28 for the U.S., which speaks to Finland's opportunistic approach.
Patrik Puistola, Aatu Raty, Saku Maenalanen, and Anton Lundell also scored for Finland. Mikko Lehtonen and Olli Maatta chipped in two assists apiece.
"Overall, a solid game," said Maatta. "I think we took it to them. I know it was back-to-back for them. That was a big emphasis for us, to make it really hard for them, and I think we did that."
Lundell praised Hameenaho and Puistola's efforts as his linemates: "Huge credit to those two guys. They were leading our way today. They were really good. Hard on pucks, scored some goals. Their 200-foot game was unreal, so I would say they were our two best players today."
Matt Coronato and Ryan Coronato replied for the Americans, who are struggling with one win and two losses so far in Zurich. They'll need to tighten up defensively for Wednesday's game against Germany.
"I think we strayed a little bit from our forechecK," added U.S. captain Justin Faulk. "We know our forecheck's pretty good. We got some good chances in the first period there off of it, and we gave them some opportunities. They capitalized and once we got behind, we couldn't find our way back in."
U.S. netminder Joseph Woll was pulled early in the second period after surrendering five goals on nine shots and was replaced by Devin Cooley. Finland’s Justus Annunen looked solid in his return between the pipes after beating Germany 3-1 in the opener.
This was a much-anticipated Group A showdown between two legitimate contenders. In February, the U.S. captured its first Olympic men’s hockey gold medal since the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” in Lake Placid, while Finland secured its fifth Olympic bronze medal. The rosters in May are different, but each national federation is rich in talent.
"We just have to keep playing together," said Finnish D-man Henri Jokiharju. " I think that's one of the biggest assets in Team Finland and has been for for a long time. Stick together and just help each other out there."
Both teams came out with hustle, putting the goalies on notice. Woll stoned Finnish captain Aleksander Barkov in front in the first minute, just before Annunen warded off an American 2-on-1. However, the ice soon tilted in Finland's favour.
Woll might like to have had the first Finnish goal back. Hameenaho bumped Ryan Leonard off the puck in open ice in the neutral zone, entered the U.S. zone on the left side, and shot a glove-side wrister inside the far post at 6:06. The 21-year-old Finnish forward, who honed his skills with Assat Pori, just completed an NHL rookie season with the New Jersey Devils in which he totalled two goals and six assists in 33 games.
The U.S. tied it up at 7:44. Puck-carrier Oliver Moore used his blazing speed to bust into the Finnish zone and dished the puck to Coronato in the left faceoff circle for a tremendous one-timer.
At 8:45, Puistola restored the Finnish lead, taking a short pass from Hameenaho at the U.S. blue line and racing in to score high.
At 14:10, Raty put Finland up 3-1 shorthanded. Cutting in over the blue line, the Vancouver Canucks forward used Wyatt Kaiser as a decoy, zinging the puck low through the legs of both the U.S. defenceman and Woll for his second goal of these Worlds.
Moments after the Finnish penalty expired, Annunen foiled Max Sasson in tight.
"He's calm in the net, so that just makes our life a little bit easier," Jokiharu said of the Nashville goalie. "We can just worry about our own things and don't have to hustle everywhere."
Finland got another power play after Leonard pulled down Puistola on a partial break in the last minute of the first period, and would head to the dressing room with three goals on eight shots.
Hameenaho capitalized on that man advantage on Finland’s first shot of the second period to make it 4-1 at 1:26. Just 31 seconds later, Maatta drifted a pass from the side boards that Maenalanen tipped in, ending Woll’s evening.
Jokiharju touted Hameenaho's release: "He has a bomb. I think everybody saw it. He just had to shoot the puck. He's a great player, an NHL player, a shooter."
Nearing the halfway mark of the middle frame, an unguarded Danny Nelson got the puck directly to Annunen’s right with a wide-open net, but fired it through the crease. That was just reflective of how this game was playing out for coach Don Granato’s troops.
The third period saw Leonard get a little redemption on a 5-on-3 power play, converting a rebound to cut the deficit to 5-2 at 3:21. However, Lundell replied with Finland's sixth goal on the man advantage just over three minutes later.
Looking ahead to facing Germany, Faulk said: "It's a tough team to play against. We just played them in the exhibition [a 5-2 U.S. win], so we have a little bit of experience from them. Our coaches will have video to break down and help us out. We'll be ready."
On Wednesday, Finland takes on a Latvian team that shut out Germany 3-0 on Sunday.
Both these teams have won one world title in the 2020s, Finland in 2022 and the U.S. in 2025. However, despite numerous playoff encounters, they have not faced each other in a World Championship final since the IIHF inaugurated the playoff system in 1992. Yet.
Final shots were 32-28 for the U.S., which speaks to Finland's opportunistic approach.
Patrik Puistola, Aatu Raty, Saku Maenalanen, and Anton Lundell also scored for Finland. Mikko Lehtonen and Olli Maatta chipped in two assists apiece.
"Overall, a solid game," said Maatta. "I think we took it to them. I know it was back-to-back for them. That was a big emphasis for us, to make it really hard for them, and I think we did that."
Lundell praised Hameenaho and Puistola's efforts as his linemates: "Huge credit to those two guys. They were leading our way today. They were really good. Hard on pucks, scored some goals. Their 200-foot game was unreal, so I would say they were our two best players today."
Matt Coronato and Ryan Coronato replied for the Americans, who are struggling with one win and two losses so far in Zurich. They'll need to tighten up defensively for Wednesday's game against Germany.
"I think we strayed a little bit from our forechecK," added U.S. captain Justin Faulk. "We know our forecheck's pretty good. We got some good chances in the first period there off of it, and we gave them some opportunities. They capitalized and once we got behind, we couldn't find our way back in."
U.S. netminder Joseph Woll was pulled early in the second period after surrendering five goals on nine shots and was replaced by Devin Cooley. Finland’s Justus Annunen looked solid in his return between the pipes after beating Germany 3-1 in the opener.
This was a much-anticipated Group A showdown between two legitimate contenders. In February, the U.S. captured its first Olympic men’s hockey gold medal since the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” in Lake Placid, while Finland secured its fifth Olympic bronze medal. The rosters in May are different, but each national federation is rich in talent.
"We just have to keep playing together," said Finnish D-man Henri Jokiharju. " I think that's one of the biggest assets in Team Finland and has been for for a long time. Stick together and just help each other out there."
Both teams came out with hustle, putting the goalies on notice. Woll stoned Finnish captain Aleksander Barkov in front in the first minute, just before Annunen warded off an American 2-on-1. However, the ice soon tilted in Finland's favour.
Woll might like to have had the first Finnish goal back. Hameenaho bumped Ryan Leonard off the puck in open ice in the neutral zone, entered the U.S. zone on the left side, and shot a glove-side wrister inside the far post at 6:06. The 21-year-old Finnish forward, who honed his skills with Assat Pori, just completed an NHL rookie season with the New Jersey Devils in which he totalled two goals and six assists in 33 games.
The U.S. tied it up at 7:44. Puck-carrier Oliver Moore used his blazing speed to bust into the Finnish zone and dished the puck to Coronato in the left faceoff circle for a tremendous one-timer.
At 8:45, Puistola restored the Finnish lead, taking a short pass from Hameenaho at the U.S. blue line and racing in to score high.
At 14:10, Raty put Finland up 3-1 shorthanded. Cutting in over the blue line, the Vancouver Canucks forward used Wyatt Kaiser as a decoy, zinging the puck low through the legs of both the U.S. defenceman and Woll for his second goal of these Worlds.
Moments after the Finnish penalty expired, Annunen foiled Max Sasson in tight.
"He's calm in the net, so that just makes our life a little bit easier," Jokiharu said of the Nashville goalie. "We can just worry about our own things and don't have to hustle everywhere."
Finland got another power play after Leonard pulled down Puistola on a partial break in the last minute of the first period, and would head to the dressing room with three goals on eight shots.
Hameenaho capitalized on that man advantage on Finland’s first shot of the second period to make it 4-1 at 1:26. Just 31 seconds later, Maatta drifted a pass from the side boards that Maenalanen tipped in, ending Woll’s evening.
Jokiharju touted Hameenaho's release: "He has a bomb. I think everybody saw it. He just had to shoot the puck. He's a great player, an NHL player, a shooter."
Nearing the halfway mark of the middle frame, an unguarded Danny Nelson got the puck directly to Annunen’s right with a wide-open net, but fired it through the crease. That was just reflective of how this game was playing out for coach Don Granato’s troops.
The third period saw Leonard get a little redemption on a 5-on-3 power play, converting a rebound to cut the deficit to 5-2 at 3:21. However, Lundell replied with Finland's sixth goal on the man advantage just over three minutes later.
Looking ahead to facing Germany, Faulk said: "It's a tough team to play against. We just played them in the exhibition [a 5-2 U.S. win], so we have a little bit of experience from them. Our coaches will have video to break down and help us out. We'll be ready."
On Wednesday, Finland takes on a Latvian team that shut out Germany 3-0 on Sunday.
Both these teams have won one world title in the 2020s, Finland in 2022 and the U.S. in 2025. However, despite numerous playoff encounters, they have not faced each other in a World Championship final since the IIHF inaugurated the playoff system in 1992. Yet.
Finland vs United States - 2026 IIHF Men's World Championship
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