China squeak past Croatia 4-3 at Men's Ice Hockey World Championship in Estonia

China squeaked past Croatia 4-3 to notch their first victory at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Division I Group B Men's World Championship in Tallinn, Estonia, in a contest that started with both teams licking their wounds after opening the competition with two pointless games.

The encounter got underway with Hou Yuyang weaving deftly around Croatia's defense before slipping a shot past Mislav Rosandic on the short side, putting China ahead 1-0. After valiant efforts from Wang Jing and Yu Jilong were stymied, a relentless Hou pounced on a rebound and doubled the lead in the second period.

Croatia, refusing to capitulate, answered with a beautifully orchestrated play just six minutes later. Patric Dobric and Karlo Marinkovic combined with surgical precision to set up Borna Rendulic, who finished with a crisp wrister. The drama intensified mere moments into the third period, as Rendulic redirected a rim pass to Vito Idzan, who leveled the contest at 2-2.

China regained the lead through Yan Juncheng, only for Croatia to tie the score again when Rendulic found Nikolas Malenica with a backhand pass, allowing the Croatian to tap in an empty-netter. But the European side's celebrations were shortlived. With less than a minute left, Yan struck once more, netting the winner to seal a crucial 4-3 triumph for China.