The IIHF announced the United States has forfeited its game Tuesday against Switzerland at the World Junior Championship in Red Deer, Alta., due to a mandated team quarantine after two players tested positive for COVID-19.
In accordance with the IIHF rule book, the result of the game will be recorded as a 1-0 win for Switzerland via forfeit.
“We’re extremely disappointed, especially for our players,” U.S. national junior team general manager John Vanbiesbrouck said in a statement. “We’re operating in an ever-changing landscape and that’s very challenging. We’ve followed the tournament protocol from the outset and will continue to do everything we can to ensure our players have the opportunity to compete at the World Junior Championship.”
The United States, who are the defending gold medallists, opened pool play Sunday with a 3-2 win over Slovakia. They are scheduled to play Group B leader Sweden (2-0-0-0) on Wednesday, however, the IIHF will evaluate the team’s quarantine status later to determine if the game will proceed.
Switzerland had a pre-tournament game against Czechia cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols.
