Sweden needed to finish the group stage of the World Cup in the Czech Republic by beating Slovakia by six goals to clinch first place in Group B ahead of Finland, who the Blue and Yellows drew (3–3) in the opening match.
After two periods in Brno, Sweden led by "only" 4-0, but in the lead-up to the third period, the superpower pulled away.
Ellen Bäckstedt made it 5–0 after 51 seconds and after 2.23 of the final period Nellie Ögren had extended the lead to 6–0. In the end, it was a 15–1 victory. It was the second straight big victory in the championship after Poland was defeated 21–0 on Sunday.
In addition to Finland and Sweden, the Czech Republic and Switzerland have also qualified for the quarter-finals. Sweden will face either Germany or Latvia – the teams will meet in a playoff on Tuesday – on Friday in Ostrava.
In a likely semi-final, Switzerland will most likely face the winner of the Slovakia–Netherlands playoff match in its quarter-final.
Sweden's women have won nine straight World Cup gold medals and have won the championship a total of eleven times (out of a possible 14).
