The wait is over. The official IIHF Fantasy game is now open, and the first puck drops in Denmark today. From today’s opening face-offs to the gold medal game on 16 November, every Gameday is a fresh chance to climb the leaderboard. It is free to play, and it only takes a few minutes to pick your first line-up.
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Day 1 has two waves. Austria vs. Czechia and Sweden vs. Canada face off at 15:00 local time, then Switzerland vs. United States and Denmark vs. Finland follow at 19:00. Remember: players lock when their own game starts, so the 15:00 picks need to be in early, while the evening slots stay open until 19:00.
The approach for Gameday 1 is simple. Back the teams most likely to control the puck, take the goalie with the clearest path to a win, and grab one player from a game where the scoreline could get lopsided.
PESLAROVA K checks every box. Czechia opens against Austria, and the Brynäs goalie arrives in Denmark one win away from moving into second place on the all-time Women’s Worlds wins list. A win plus a shutout is worth 8 points before a single save is counted.
HARVEY C is the engine of the U.S. back end and should see plenty of the puck against Switzerland. JAQUES S, now with the Vancouver Goldeneyes, is one of Canada’s most aggressive puck-movers and gives you a piece of the Sweden–Canada game in the early wave.
FILLIER S is Canada’s top offensive threat with Marie-Philip Poulin out recovering from knee surgery, so a bigger share of the scoring load should run through her against Sweden.
MLYNKOVA N completes the Czech mini-stack. If Czechia breaks the game open against Austria, the PWHL San Jose forward is in line for goals, assists and a healthy plus/minus, and she pairs neatly with PESLAROVA K: when the Czechs win big, both cash in.
One more tip: each player can be picked a maximum of three times in the preliminary round, and the top teams play four group games. Using players today means sitting them once later, so plan which game you will skip.
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What you can win
- 1st place: two tickets to the gold medal game of the 2027 IIHF Women’s World Championship, plus an official IIHF merchandise package
- 2nd place: two tickets to a preliminary-round game at the 2027 IIHF Women’s World Championship, plus an official IIHF merchandise package
- 3rd place: an official IIHF merchandise package
How it works
- Pick a new six-player line-up every Gameday: one goalie, two defenders and three forwards.
- Choose no more than three players from the same country on any Gameday.
- Each player can be picked up to three times in the preliminary round and twice in the playoffs.
- Name a captain every Gameday. Your captain scores double points.
- Use the 3x Booster on one non-captain player. It triples that player’s points, and you can play it only once in the tournament.
- Players lock as soon as their own game starts, so you can still adjust later picks during the day.
- Points come from the official IIHF live scoring: goals, assists, shots on goal, plus/minus and game-winners for skaters, and wins, shutouts and saves for goalies.
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Day 1 recommendations
Our first line-up leans on the favorites, spreads across three nations and puts the armband on the most decorated player in Women’s Worlds history.Day 1 has two waves. Austria vs. Czechia and Sweden vs. Canada face off at 15:00 local time, then Switzerland vs. United States and Denmark vs. Finland follow at 19:00. Remember: players lock when their own game starts, so the 15:00 picks need to be in early, while the evening slots stay open until 19:00.
The approach for Gameday 1 is simple. Back the teams most likely to control the puck, take the goalie with the clearest path to a win, and grab one player from a game where the scoreline could get lopsided.
In goal: PESLAROVA K (CZE)
Goalie points in IIHF Fantasy come from wins (3), shutouts (5) and saves (0.2 each), minus 1 for every goal against. A busy underdog netminder can rack up saves, but the goals against usually cancel them out. The safer play is the starter for a favorite.PESLAROVA K checks every box. Czechia opens against Austria, and the Brynäs goalie arrives in Denmark one win away from moving into second place on the all-time Women’s Worlds wins list. A win plus a shutout is worth 8 points before a single save is counted.
On defense: HARVEY C (USA) and JAQUES S (CAN)
Defenders who drive the offense are gold in this scoring system: shots, assists and plus/minus all add up, and a goal from the blue line pays the same 4 points as one from a forward.HARVEY C is the engine of the U.S. back end and should see plenty of the puck against Switzerland. JAQUES S, now with the Vancouver Goldeneyes, is one of Canada’s most aggressive puck-movers and gives you a piece of the Sweden–Canada game in the early wave.
Up front: KNIGHT H (USA, C), FILLIER S (CAN), MLYNKOVA N (CZE)
The captaincy goes to KNIGHT H. The defending champions open against Switzerland, and every time KNIGHT H is in on a U.S. goal she extends her own Women’s Worlds records for goals, assists and points. With the captain’s double points, one KNIGHT H goal is worth 8 and an assist is worth 4.FILLIER S is Canada’s top offensive threat with Marie-Philip Poulin out recovering from knee surgery, so a bigger share of the scoring load should run through her against Sweden.
MLYNKOVA N completes the Czech mini-stack. If Czechia breaks the game open against Austria, the PWHL San Jose forward is in line for goals, assists and a healthy plus/minus, and she pairs neatly with PESLAROVA K: when the Czechs win big, both cash in.
Underdog watch: MULLER A (SUI)
Switzerland faces the Olympic champions, so this is a contrarian call. But MULLER A is the Swiss attack, and in games like this she tends to be on the ice for nearly every dangerous chance her team gets. If you want a differential that most managers will skip, she is the one forward who can turn a few shots and a single goal into a big swing up the leaderboard.Booster: hold it
The 3x booster can be used only once in the tournament. Gameday 1 has no truly lopsided game, so we are saving it for another game, where a top forward can pile up points.One more tip: each player can be picked a maximum of three times in the preliminary round, and the top teams play four group games. Using players today means sitting them once later, so plan which game you will skip.
The full Day 1 lineup
GK PESLAROVA K (CZE); DEF HARVEY C (USA), JAQUES S (CAN); FWD KNIGHT H (USA, C), FILLIER S (CAN), MLYNKOVA N (CZE).LINK PLAY IIHF FANTASY NOW