Latvia defeated the United States 4-2 at the 2026 IIHF World Championship on Saturday, shaking up the Group A standings.
Florida Panthers forward Sandis Vilmanis led Latvia with two goals and an assist, according to NHL. com.
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Goaltender Kristers Gudlevskis made 45 saves to anchor the Latvian defense.
The victory moved Latvia into fourth place in Group A, one point ahead of the United States.
Only the top four teams from each group advance to the quarterfinals on May 28.
Team USA had a 12-1-1-3-1 historical advantage over Latvia in 18 previous men's world championship meetings, including a 6-3 win in 2024.
Latvia rebounded from a 7-1 loss to Finland on Thursday.
New York Islanders prospect Danny Nelson was elevated to third-line center for the United States and earned his first tournament point with a secondary assist on a second-period power-play goal by Matthew Tkachuk.
Tkachuk had a goal and an assist, tipping in a shot from Oliver Moore to tie the game 1-1.
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Latvia reclaimed the lead in the third period when Deniss Smirnovs scored off a pass from Vilmanis.
Vilmanis then scored an empty-net goal to make it 3-1 with 1:02 remaining.
Mathieu Olivier scored from the slot off a pass from Tkachuk to cut the deficit to 3-2 with 51 seconds left.
Nine seconds later, Vilmanis scored his second empty-net goal to seal the 4-2 win.
"It's amazing that we got the win," Vilmanis told IIHF. com.
The United States has two remaining Group A matches against Hungary and Austria.
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Latvia is scheduled to face Great Britain and Hungary.
