Czechia storms back against USA to win bronze at Worlds

David Pastrnak's hat trick helped propel Czechia to an 8-4 victory over the United States in Sunday's bronze-medal game at the IIHF World Championship.

The Czechs trailed the Americans 2-0 and 3-1 in the first period. However, they scored six times in the third period and at one point tallied six unanswered goals.

Pastrnak scored his three markers against Boston Bruins teammate Jeremy Swayman, who was in net for the United States. Pastrnak finished the tournament with seven goals and three assists in seven games.

David Kampf scored twice for Czechia, with one being an empty-netter. Tomas Hertl chipped in with three assists. Captain Roman Cervenka notched a goal and an assist, finishing with a tournament-high 17 points in 10 contests.

This is the first time Czechia has medaled at the Worlds since winning bronze in 2012, ending the nation's longest medal drought in the tournament's history.