Danny Nelson of Notre Dame nets two goals as defending champion US triumphs over Latvia 5-1 in World Junior Hockey.

OTTAWA, Ontario — In the ongoing world junior hockey championship, Notre Dame forward Danny Nelson netted two goals, while Hampton Slukynsky of Western Michigan made 25 saves, helping the United States defeat Latvia 5-1 on Saturday.

This victory ensures that the United States remains unbeaten with a record of 2-0 in Group A, while Latvia’s record stands at 1-1 after their recent surprising win against Canada, which finished 3-2 in a shootout.

Coach David Carle from Denver acknowledged the improvements made by his team, stating, “We observed some growth in our performance today. Was it flawless? Definitely not. A lot of credit goes to Latvia and their relentless effort. We needed to fight for every opportunity on the ice, and this experience will prove beneficial as we advance further in the tournament.”

Alongside Nelson, other goal scorers for the United States included Ryan Leonard from Boston College, Zeev Buium from Denver, and Max Plante from Minnesota Duluth. The U.S. squad is set to face Finland next at Canadian Tire Centre on Sunday, followed by a crucial matchup against Canada on Tuesday evening to conclude group play.
For Latvia, Davids Livsics managed to score their lone goal, while Linards Feldbergs had a busy game, stopping 36 shots. He had an impressive performance against Canada before, where he made 55 saves and successfully stopped all eight shootout attempts.

In a separate match that day, Czechia dominated Kazakhstan with a staggering score of 14-2 at TD Place. Both Czechia and Sweden have also achieved a perfect 2-0 record in Group B. Noteworthy performances included hat tricks from Matej Mastalirsky, Vojtech Hradec, and Jakub Stancl, with Hradec and Stancl each contributing two assists as well.