Russia - Latvia 6-0

The defending champion of Russia put on a pleasant show in its first game in the 2013 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, a show that included fancy stickwork, solid goaltending, and lots of goals, as it beat Latvia 6-0. Ilya Kovalchuk scored one and added an assist, Yevgeni Biryukov collected two assists, and Ilya Bryzgalov made 13 saves for Russia en route to a shutout.