▪ Teams are ranked, 1 through 12, after the prelims. The top four get byes.
▪ Teams are seeded by the following criteria, in order: group position, number of points, goal differential, goals scored, and IIHF world ranking.
▪ The first round and quarterfinals are bracketed; the semifinals are re-seeded.
It’s all elimination games from here on out. Win, or go have an Aperol spritz.
Here’s a breakdown of the playoff seedings:
No. 1 Canada — If there was any doubt the Canadians are best-in-class at this tournament, it was shattered when they put up a 10-spot on France in their finale. In the prelims, they also shut down David Pastrnak and the Czechs, and made the Swiss stop ticking.
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They had four of the top six scorers (Connor McDavid, Macklin Celebrini, Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon) in the tournament. Tom Wilson was a menace. No worries about the goaltending, either. They’re a problem.
No. 2 United States — It was choppy at times, but here they are. The Americans didn’t always carry the play, and Jeremy Swayman cemented his spot as the No. 3 goalie, but the best players on the roster have had their moments.
Auston Matthews is coming on, with two goals in Sunday’s 5-1 win over Germany, and the Americans still might have the deepest roster here. The Tkachuk brothers-and-Jack Eichel line is leading the way (particularly Brady Tkachuk, playing like a captain who doesn’t wear the ‘C’).
No. 3 Slovakia — They’ve already played the most memorable game of the tournament: a 5-3 loss to Sweden after which their fans celebrated like they won a playoff round. In that game, Dalibor Dvorsky’s goal with 39 seconds left cut Sweden’s lead to 5-3 — forcing the Swedes to pull their goalie despite being ahead by two.
The win gave the Slovaks the best goal differential in the Group B deadlock between Slovakia, Finland, and Sweden — the first tiebreaker between teams tied in a group. Watch out for 21-year-old Juraj Slafkovsky, the Montreal Canadiens forward who was tourney MVP at Beijing 2022. He now has a goal in all 10 Olympic games he has played.
No. 4 Finland — The Finns are a reserved people, generally. They weren’t shying away from the following after playing Italy: They were trying to run up the score. Their 11-0 triumph boosted their goal differential to plus-11, helping them emerge from their Group of Death.
As expected, it’s a by-committee offense without Aleksander Barkov. Juuse Saros, one of the league’s most overworked goalies in Nashville, was the only netminder to play every minute of the prelims for his team.
Bruins star David Pastrnak (left), celebrating a goal by teammate Martin Necas, powers Czechia into the knockout stages, where they will face off vs. Denmark.Gregory Shamus/Getty
No. 8 Czechia vs. No. 9 Denmark — Bruins star Pastrnak has been the most dangerous player on the ice for most of his shifts (well, except against Canada), and the Czechs have some of the most passionate fans at Santagiulia Arena (if you’re reading this from Milan, try to stop by the Czech House). The Danes will have to be “goal from center ice” lucky to win here. The winner will face top-seed Canada in the quarterfinals.
No. 7 Sweden vs. No. 10 Latvia —The talented Swedes aren’t your average seven-seed. Third in a tough Group B, they were one goal shy of being in Slovakia’s No. 3 spot. Latvia plays hard, despite lacking NHL-caliber scorers, and could muscle their way into a rematch with Team USA in the quarterfinals. If Sweden comes to play, the US are in for it.
Bruins prospect Dans Locmelis has carried over his scoring touch from Providence, but he and his Latvian mates have a tough first-round test against mighty Sweden. SUN FEI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
No. 6 Germany vs. No. 11 France — Whatever the final score here, I’ll be eager to hear what French captain and former NHLer Pierre-Edouard Bellemare says. After getting stomped by Canada, the 41-year-old noted that, as skilled as the Canadians are, they work harder than the French do. Maybe I was wrong,” he added. “Maybe they were like, smoke a cig and play … I felt like they were working.” His take on former BU star Celebrini: “If that’s what the NHL is gonna look like, it’s better for me to not be in there anymore.” The winner here will advance to face surprise Slovakia in the quarters.
No. 5 Switzerland vs. No. 12 Italy — A border battle that shouldn’t be close, though the Italians delighted their home crowd by pushing the Finns in the opener. Maybe they’ve got some magic in them. Regardless: The Swiss and Italians playing in a playoff game in the shadow of the Alps? Sign me up. The winner gets Finland.
Matt Porter can be reached at matthew.porter@globe.com. Follow him on BlueSky at mattyports.bsky.social.