Germany – Great Britain 3-2 (2-1, 0-0, 0-0, 1-1)

It was a struggle, but in the end Germany dispatched Great Britain back to Division I with a 3-2 victory.

It looked like it would be a clear victory for the Germans after they scored two goals in the first three minutes of action, but after the strong start, the Germans stalled, not finding the back of the net for another 40 minutes.

Luckily for Germany, during that span, Great Britain’s offense was virtually harmless, only netting one goal to make it a 2-1 affair for much of the game. Thomas Greilinger extended the German lead to 3-1 with the long-awaited goal. Four minutes later, Great Britain made a last ditch effort to comeback, when Alex Pearman gave the Brits hope with the 3-2 marker. But the hearty goal celebration soon came to an end as the final seconds ticked off the clock.

It is the third time that Great Britain has lost the cross-over game by one goal. The nation has never played in the top division since the World Championship was expanded to 16 teams. On the other end of the spectrum, Germany can breathe a sigh of relief after dodging the Great Britain bullet.

Great Britain returns to Division I as the top seed headed into the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Germany has a tough road in the top division as the fourth seed that must now take on defending champion Sweden in tomorrow’s quarterfinal.

JENNY WIEDEKE