Sweden guaranteed top spot in Group B with their third straight victory ©IIHF

Sweden secured top spot in Group A at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Championship as they recorded their third straight victory with a dominant 5-0 win over Denmark in Helsinki.

The Swedes, beaten by Russia in last year’s bronze medal contest, now cannot be surpassed at the summit of the group and are guaranteed a place in the quarter-finals in the tournament in Finland's capital. 

They opened the scoring after just 13 seconds in their clash with their Scandanavian rivals as Adrian Kempe broke free and fired home to give his side an early lead.

Gustav Norling then squeezed the puck over the line to double his side’s advantage towards the end of the first period but they were made to wait until the end of the second to put the result of the match beyond doubt as Oskar Lindblom cleverly diverted Adam Ollas Mattsson’s shot into the net.

With victory all but sealed, Sweden took their foot off the gas but added a fourth thanks to William Lagesson and Alexander Nylander completed the rout to put the gloss on another superb display.

“I haven't given the quarter-final opponent any thought, but of course it would be nice to play against Finland in Helsinki, on their home ice,” Sweden’s Gustav Forsling said.

“But it actually does not matter one bit, we have to be ready to beat all of them to go all the way.”

The United States were in rampant form as they hammered Switzerland 10-1
The United States were in rampant form as they hammered Switzerland 10-1 ©IIHF

In the other match in Group A, the United States bounced back from their defeat to Sweden earlier in the tournament, hammering Switzerland 10-1.

Matthew Tkachuk and Auston Matthews each bagged two goals each, while Nick Schmaltz, Christian Dvorak, Zach Werenski, Colin White, Ryan Donato and Brandon Carlo all got on the scoresheet.

Hosts Finland remain on course for the last eight as they thrashed 2015 bronze medallists Slovakia 8-3 in Group B in front of a delighted home crowd.

The Finnish outfit began slowly and found themselves 2-0 down before they launched a spirited fightback, eventually proving too strong for the Slovaks on their way to their second win of the competition.

In the other Group B match to take place today, the Czech Republic survived a scare before beating Belarus 5-3.

The event is due to continue tomorrow when Russia play Slovakia and the US go up against Denmark.

Finland and the Czech Republic then face-off in a crucial encounter before defending champions Canada entertain Sweden.