Jan Drozg (#21) puts Slovenia in front against Italy at the 2026 IIHF World Championship
photo: © INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION / MATT ZAMBONIN
Jan Drozg scored twice and Marcel Mahkovec had a four-point as Slovenia secured its place in the top division of the IIHF World Championship with a 5-1 victory over Italy.
Phil Pietroniro gave the Italians hope of survival with the opening goal early in the second period, but Matic Torok tied the scores midway through the game and Slovenia took control. Zan Jezovsek was also on target as his country repeated its biggest ever margin of victory in World Championship play.
Slovenia’s heroes are team-mates for Olimpija Ljubljana in the ICE League. Mahkovec, 22, is one of his country’s rising stars and enjoyed a strong season in the new IIHF European Cup of Nations. Drozg, 27, is something of an old hand, having played juniors in Sweden and Canada, plus five seasons in the AHL. Together, they combined to secure their country’s elite status.
“We just said it’s game seven of the final, it’s the last game of the season,” he said. “We prepared the whole season for that kind of moment. We knew what was on the line.
“Even when we were 1-0 down, we didn’t change anything. I’m just so proud of the whole team.”
And there’s extra pride in bringing Slovenia back for a third season: “It’s huge. The first time in history. Everybody is so proud and excited. We knew when we beat Czechia that we have something special here. We just believed, we kept our heads, and we made history.”
Italy came into the game knowing that only victory in regulation would do. Slovenia had the edge thanks to a sensational OT win over Czechia and a shoot-out loss to Slovakia in its first six games.
But a loss inside 60 minutes would cost Slovenia an unprecedented third successive season at the summit. The only problem? Italy had six losses this term, five in regulation. The last time it won inside three periods was in 2014, a 2-1 victory over France.
With high stakes, the first period was tense. The teams traded 10 shots apiece but seldom managed to seriously test Damian Clara and Lukas Horak in the respective goals.
“We came out strong, we established the game we wanted to play,” said Italian defender Luca Zanatta. “Maybe we just lost a little bit of focus, a little bit of sharpness. One power play can shift momentum v fast and that’s what happened. Then a bit of frustration took over and it just wasn’t good enough by our side.”
Things escalated rapidly in the second. Italy struck early, punishing a Slovenia icing in the third minute. Two good passes from the face off found Pietroniro open in the right-hand circle and with Horak distracted by Mantenuto at the back door, the defender’s fourth shot of the night found a path over the glove.
At that point, Italy was staying up – but the lead lasted little more than five minutes. That was the time Slovenia needed to tie it up midway through the second period. A big effort from Mahkovec behind the net set up Torok, who got away from the defensive cover to rifle a shot over Clara’s left shoulder.
“I think we were really confident in our team,” added Torok. “We knew what we could achieve. We stuck together and we knew we could score goals. We weren’t going to be disturbed if we’re 1-0 down.”
Then came two power plays, both converted by Drozg. The first took just nine seconds: a quick move from the face-off got the puck net side where Mahkovec spun and shot, producing a rebound for Drozg to pounce.
And in the final seconds of the frame, the Olimpiya forward scored off another Mahkovec feed to make it 3-1 and leave Italy with a mountain to climb. This time, the shot seemed improbable as Drozg turned sharply on the goal line wide to the left. But a laser-like effort flashed over Clara’s shoulder and inside the near post.
That left Italy needing three goals in the third period: a tall order for a team that had five goals in the previous 20 frames in Fribourg.
Jukka Jalonen’s men made a lively start in search of a lifeline. Bradley tested Horak in the first minute, and the Slovenian goalie had to react smartly to freeze the puck after scorching effort from Daniel Mantenuto.
Then came a power play, but Slovenia’s PK was strong. And back at equal strength, Mahkovec took over a play from Torok to make it 4-1 and put the game beyond reach. A five-on-three power play brought a fifth for Zan Jezovsek as Slovenia finished the job in style.
Phil Pietroniro gave the Italians hope of survival with the opening goal early in the second period, but Matic Torok tied the scores midway through the game and Slovenia took control. Zan Jezovsek was also on target as his country repeated its biggest ever margin of victory in World Championship play.
Slovenia’s heroes are team-mates for Olimpija Ljubljana in the ICE League. Mahkovec, 22, is one of his country’s rising stars and enjoyed a strong season in the new IIHF European Cup of Nations. Drozg, 27, is something of an old hand, having played juniors in Sweden and Canada, plus five seasons in the AHL. Together, they combined to secure their country’s elite status.
“We just said it’s game seven of the final, it’s the last game of the season,” he said. “We prepared the whole season for that kind of moment. We knew what was on the line.
“Even when we were 1-0 down, we didn’t change anything. I’m just so proud of the whole team.”
And there’s extra pride in bringing Slovenia back for a third season: “It’s huge. The first time in history. Everybody is so proud and excited. We knew when we beat Czechia that we have something special here. We just believed, we kept our heads, and we made history.”
Italy came into the game knowing that only victory in regulation would do. Slovenia had the edge thanks to a sensational OT win over Czechia and a shoot-out loss to Slovakia in its first six games.
But a loss inside 60 minutes would cost Slovenia an unprecedented third successive season at the summit. The only problem? Italy had six losses this term, five in regulation. The last time it won inside three periods was in 2014, a 2-1 victory over France.
With high stakes, the first period was tense. The teams traded 10 shots apiece but seldom managed to seriously test Damian Clara and Lukas Horak in the respective goals.
“We came out strong, we established the game we wanted to play,” said Italian defender Luca Zanatta. “Maybe we just lost a little bit of focus, a little bit of sharpness. One power play can shift momentum v fast and that’s what happened. Then a bit of frustration took over and it just wasn’t good enough by our side.”
Things escalated rapidly in the second. Italy struck early, punishing a Slovenia icing in the third minute. Two good passes from the face off found Pietroniro open in the right-hand circle and with Horak distracted by Mantenuto at the back door, the defender’s fourth shot of the night found a path over the glove.
At that point, Italy was staying up – but the lead lasted little more than five minutes. That was the time Slovenia needed to tie it up midway through the second period. A big effort from Mahkovec behind the net set up Torok, who got away from the defensive cover to rifle a shot over Clara’s left shoulder.
“I think we were really confident in our team,” added Torok. “We knew what we could achieve. We stuck together and we knew we could score goals. We weren’t going to be disturbed if we’re 1-0 down.”
Then came two power plays, both converted by Drozg. The first took just nine seconds: a quick move from the face-off got the puck net side where Mahkovec spun and shot, producing a rebound for Drozg to pounce.
And in the final seconds of the frame, the Olimpiya forward scored off another Mahkovec feed to make it 3-1 and leave Italy with a mountain to climb. This time, the shot seemed improbable as Drozg turned sharply on the goal line wide to the left. But a laser-like effort flashed over Clara’s shoulder and inside the near post.
That left Italy needing three goals in the third period: a tall order for a team that had five goals in the previous 20 frames in Fribourg.
Jukka Jalonen’s men made a lively start in search of a lifeline. Bradley tested Horak in the first minute, and the Slovenian goalie had to react smartly to freeze the puck after scorching effort from Daniel Mantenuto.
Then came a power play, but Slovenia’s PK was strong. And back at equal strength, Mahkovec took over a play from Torok to make it 4-1 and put the game beyond reach. A five-on-three power play brought a fifth for Zan Jezovsek as Slovenia finished the job in style.
Slovenia vs Italy - 2026 IIHF Men's World Championship
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