2026 World Juniors: Top standouts from Germany vs. Switzerland
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Switzerland has qualified for the quarterfinals after beating Germany 4-0.
The winner of Switzerland vs. Slovakia on Wednesday will finish third in Group A, while the loser will finish fourth and face the winner of Group B in the quarterfinals. The Germans will play in the relegation game on Friday at 12:30 PM ET, with the opponent to be determined later.
The Swiss were in full control in the first period, outshooting Germany 19-7. Some power-play time helped, but the team seemed to really come together in a way we hadn’t seen before. Kimi Koerbler would open the scoring at 11:42 before Jamiro Reber doubled the advantage less than two minutes later on the man advantage. Switzerland continued to dominate the rest of the game, but only Ludvig Johnsson would find the back of the net to close off the day.
Here’s a look at the top performers during Tuesday’s lone game at Grand Casino Arena:
Germany
#29 Lennart Neiße, G: It wasn’t a particularly incredible game out of Neiße, but he seemed to be the only German player who showed up today. He had to make a couple of difficult glove stops, and he kept getting the puck out of trouble. But beyond that, it’s hard to do much when you’ve got no defensive support against a team that isn’t known for shooting a whole lot.
Switzerland
#41 Leon Muggli, D (Washington Capitals): Muggli is a wizard with the puck. He struggled during the pre-tournament after missing most of the season due to injury. But once he got comfortable in Minnesota, he started to really come together. Muggli played his most dominant game today, making high-end passes and launching his NHL-caliber shot from the point.
#15 Lars Steiner, C (2026 NHL Draft): Steiner is Switzerland’s best puck distributor and it’s not even close. It feels like he runs the power play by himself at times. Switzerland doesn’t have a ton of skill, so a lot of their offense has to come on the power play. Steiner’s vision and hockey sense shone through today.
#39 Jamiro Reber, RW: If you’ve followed the WJC, you know all about Reber – it’s his third tournament. Yet, somehow, he only scored his first IIHF goal today. He has always been one of the better 2006-born forwards, so it was quite surprising. Today, though, he seemed to find some newfound energy after the goal and looked impressive the rest of the way, especially as a playmaker.
#89 Kimi Körbler, RW: Körbler hadn’t played much in this tournament leading into today. But he made his ice time count today with two goals. His second marker was an impressive effort – he forced a turnover and got his own rebound. He’s sneaky with the way he catches up to you and creates his own chances.
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