China's men's ice hockey team secures their third consecutive victory in Group B of the World Championships
A total of six teams compete in a single round-robin format with 15 matches in total. The tournament winner will be promoted to Division I Group A, while the bottom-placed team will be relegated to Division II. The Chinese National Men's Ice Hockey Team will face South Korea, Romania, the Netherlands, Spain and Estonia in sequence, striving for a higher ranking on home ice. Serving as a vital platform for international sports exchanges, the event vividly implements China's strategy of promoting ice and snow sports in southern, western and eastern regions. It further fuels public enthusiasm for ice and snow sports in southern China and injects new momentum into the development of the ice and snow industry in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.On May 3, in the fourth round of the tournament, Team China sealed a dominant 3:0 shutout victory over Spain, securing its third consecutive win. Before this clash, China had claimed two victories and ranked fourth in the group, making this crucial match essential for its medal contention.
The first period saw tight defence and fast transitions on both sides. China kept pressing Spain’s defence and created multiple threatening chances, yet failed to score. Goalie Tu Yuran delivered solid performances with outstanding saves to defuse repeated offensive threats from the opponent. Intense physical collisions characterised the second period, with the deadlock remaining unbroken. Two penalties put China at a disadvantage, handing Spain multiple power-play opportunities including a 5-on-3 edge. Nonetheless, the Chinese team tightened its defence and withstood the pressure perfectly, leaving the score 0-0 after two periods.The deadlock was finally broken at 53:50 in the third period. Wang Haoxi’s long-range shot was blocked, and Wang Jing delivered a timely pass for Hou Yuyang to score the opening goal. Just two minutes later, a foul from Spain gifted China a penalty shot, which Hou Yuyang converted calmly to double the lead to 2:0. In a desperate offensive push, Spain pulled its goaltender for an extra skater. Liu Zihao then seized the chance to score into an empty net at 57:30, finalising the score at 3:0.
Hou Yuyang, who scored two goals in the game, admitted that it was a tough contest, adding that the whole team persisted and fought hard from start to finish. Seventeen-year-old rookie goaltender Tu Yuran, playing in his first national team campaign, was named Team China’s Player of the Game. He made 21 saves throughout the match to secure the clean sheet. The young talent shared that he had grown more composed with accumulated tournament experience and expressed great excitement about representing his country and playing alongside teammates on home ice. Hou Yuyang also spoke highly of his teammate, stating that Tu Yuran was fully deserving of the honour with his brilliant saves.In other fixtures on the same day, Estonia beat Romania 3:1 to secure four straight victories, clinching the group title one round in advance and gaining promotion to Division I Group A for next year. South Korea defeated the Netherlands 4:1.
Team China will wrap up its group stage campaign against Estonia on May 5.
