US blanks the Czechs and Canada beats the Swiss at women’s ice hockey worlds

CESKE BUDEJOVICE, Czech Republic (AP) — The United States proved its favorite status by shutting out host the Czech Republic 4-0 at the women’s ice hockey world championship on Friday.

Abbey Murphy led with two goals, Alex Carpenter had a goal and and assist, and captain Hilary Knight also scored to claim their second straight win in Group A.

Czech goalie Michaela Hesová had to face 48 shots while her U.S. counterpart Gwyneth Philips stopped 10 for the shutout.

Murphy scored the opener with a one-timed slap shot from the left circle with 5:02 to go in the opening period and roofed the second from close range 6:58 into the second.

“Our leaders paved the way for us," Murphy said. "They’re a good, strong team over there. Give them a lot of credit for playing us pretty hard off the bat. But honestly, we just found our way. Putting pucks in the net, finishing off opportunities we’ve been getting all game. It was really cool, and the atmosphere was awesome.”

Knight tapped in the puck that bounced off the boards behind the goal early in the third period.

Knight, the all-time leading scorer at the worlds, improved her record to 67.

Carpenter deflected in a shot by Megan Keller from the blue line on a power play for 4-0.

It was the third assist for Keller in the game.

Earlier, defending champion Canada scored three goals in a span of 2:32 while beating Switzerland 4-0 for consecutive shutouts.

Laura Stacey had a goal and an assist, Micah Zandee-Hart, Natalie Spooner and Daryl Watts also scored and captain Marie-Philip Poulin recorded three assists in the Group A game.

Zandee-Hart scored on a rebound in the opening period and Canada struck three times in the middle frame when it outshot the Swiss 16-3.

Spooner doubled the advantage on a power play 7:14 into the period, Stacey added the third on a one-timer 1:52 later, and Watts needed just 40 seconds to make it 4-0 from the left circle.

Goalkeeper Ann-Renee Desbiens stopped 17 shots for the shutout. Desbiens started her first game since a lower-body injury on March 18.

Canada shut out Finland 5-0 in its opening game on Thursday with Kristen Campbell in the goal.

Canada and the U.S., the two title favorites, meet on Sunday.

"They’re super-skilled, a great team, and we’re just excited,” Watts said about the Americans after scoring her first career goal at the worlds.

Japan secured its second win from two games by 2-0 over Hungary.

Yumeka Wajima scored on a breakaway with 0:23 left in the opening period and Akane Shiga scored into an empty net with eight seconds remaining.

Japan goaltender Miyuu Masuhara stopped 27 shots.

Hungary lost its second straight game, 2-0 to Sweden.

AP women’s hockey: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-hockey

United States' Hilary Knight (21) celebrates a goal against the Czech Republic during a Group A match at the women's world ice hockey championships, Friday, April 11, 2025, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

United States' Kendall Coyne Schofield (26) skates in as teammate Abbey Murphy (37) scores on Czech Republic goalkeeper Michaela Hesova during a Group A match at the women's world ice hockey championships, Friday, April 11, 2025, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

United States' Abbey Murphy celebrates a goal against the Czech Republic during a Group A match at the women's world ice hockey championships, Friday, April 11, 2025, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

Japanese players celebrate their victory after the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group B, match between Hungary and Japan, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

Lara Stalder of Switzerland, left, and goalkeeper Ann-Renée Desbiens of Canada in action during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group A, match between Switzerland and Canada, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Petr Skrivanek/CTK via AP)

Canada's Micah Zandee-Hart celebrates scoring during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group A, match between Switzerland and Canada, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Petr Skrivanek/CTK via AP)

Players of Canada celebrate a goal during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group A, match between Switzerland and Canada, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Petr Skrivanek/CTK via AP)

Canada's Marie-Philip Poulin, left, scores past Swiss goalkeeper Andrea Braendli during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group A, match between Switzerland and Canada, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Petr Skrivanek/CTK via AP)

From left, Makoto Ito of Japan, goalkeeper Miyuu Masuhara of Japan and Réka Hiezl of Hungary in action during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group B, match between Hungary and Japan, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

Alexandra Huszák of Hungary, left, and goalkeeper Miyuu Masuhara of Japan in action during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group B, match between Hungary and Japan, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

Yumeka Wajima of Japan, left, scores a goal against goalkeeper Anikó Németh of Hungary during the IIHF Women's World Championship, Group B, match between Hungary and Japan, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, Friday, April 11, 2025. (Vaclav Pancer/CTK via AP)

HELSINGBORG, Sweden (AP) — NATO allies and defense officials expressed bewilderment Friday at U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland just weeks after ordering the same number of forces pulled out of Europe.

The apparent change of mind came after weeks of statements from Trump and his administration about reducing — not increasing — the U.S. military footprint in Europe. Trump's initial order set off a flurry of action among military commanders and left allies already doubtful about America's commitment to Europe's security to ponder what forces they might have to backfill on NATO's eastern flank with Russia and Ukraine.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it was reducing levels in Europe by about 5,000 troops, and U.S. officials confirmed about 4,000 service members were no longer rotating into Poland from Germany. The dispatch to Germany of U.S. personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was also halted.

But in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump said he would now send "an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland,” citing his strong ties with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom Trump endorsed in elections last year.

“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told reporters Friday at a meeting she was hosting of her NATO counterparts, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Ministers from the Netherlands and Norway were sanguine about Trump’s latest move, as was Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, who said allies knew the U.S. troop “posture was being reconsidered, and now there is no change of posture. For now.”

U.S. defense officials also expressed confusion. “We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement. We don’t know what this means either,” said one of two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters.

But Rubio said Washington’s allies understand that changes in the U.S. troop presence in Europe will come as the Trump administration reevaluates its force needs. “I think there’s a broad recognition that there are going to be eventually less U.S. troops in Europe than there has historically been for a variety of reasons,” he said.

The latest surprise came despite a U.S. pledge to coordinate troop deployments, including one from NATO’s top military officer, U.S. Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, on Wednesday.

Trump's initial announcement that he would withdraw troops came as he fumed over remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said that the U.S. was being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and criticized what he called a lack of strategy in that war.

Trump told reporters that the U.S. would be cutting even more than 5,000 and also announced new tariffs on European cars. Germany is the continent’s biggest auto producer.

Rubio insisted that Trump’s decision “is not a punitive thing. It’s just something that’s ongoing.”

About 80,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Europe. The Pentagon is required to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment on the continent unless NATO allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in U.S. interests.

The withdrawal of 5,000 troops might drop numbers below that limit.

But Trump's latest post suggests that troop numbers in Europe would not change. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski welcomed the decision to send more forces to his country, saying it ensures that “the presence of American troops in Poland will be maintained more or less at previous levels.”

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also welcomed the move. On Thursday, before Trump took to Truth Social again, Rutte had underlined that it was important for Europe to take care of its own security. “We have a process in place. This is normal business,” he told reporters.

At NATO headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, U.S. officials briefed the allies on the Pentagon's aims for its commitments to the NATO Force Model, which involves contingency planning for Europe’s defense in the event of serious security concerns. It was widely expected that a further reduction of U.S. forces would be coming.

Asked whether any cuts were announced, Rutte said: “I’m afraid it’s much more complicated than that.” He said the procedure “is highly classified” and declined to give details.

Rubio played down concerns about a shift in U.S. force levels in Europe, saying: "Every country has to constantly reevaluate what their needs are, what their commitments are around the world, and how to properly structure that.”

Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writer Emma Burrows in London contributed.

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with journalists during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, front second left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, front left, speak with each other during a group photo at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte look at each other as they deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže speaks at the doorstep of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting at Sea U in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)

Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives with his wife Jeanette at Malmo Airport, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Malmo-Sturup, Sweden, ahead of a NATO foreign ministers meeting. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, second from left, shakes hands with Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson, as he is greeted by King Carl Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Silvia of Sweden and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Maria Malmer Stenergard, right, before a dinner at Sofiero Castle in Helsingborg, Sweden, Thursday May 21 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)

Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)