How Ice Hockey Overtime Works: Thailand's 3-on-3 Winner

Thailand's under-18 ice hockey team won gold in Sarajevo on 19 February 2026 when captain Chayaphon Jaratkorn scored with 32 seconds left in overtime. In ice hockey overtime, each side plays with three skaters and a goalkeeper, and the first goal ends the game.

The goal that ended it

The final of the IIHF U18 World Championship Division III, Group B, would not stay still. Iceland scored first, and Thailand equalised before the first-period break. Iceland regained the lead on a penalty shot in the second period, Buzzer reported. Then Thailand levelled within 90 seconds of the start of the third and went ahead.

Iceland pulled it level again with just over three minutes left in regulation. That sent the game to overtime, and overtime is where hockey changes shape. After an Iceland mix-up in its own zone, Jaratkorn scored the winner. The IIHF said it completed his hat-trick.

Why overtime is 3-on-3

Normal hockey is five skaters a side. In overtime under the IIHF rule book, it drops to three skaters and a goalkeeper each, according to Article 84. Two skaters leave the ice, and the space they were standing in is now empty. That is the point. With fewer bodies in the way, a breakaway is easier to find and a defensive mix-up costs more.

Iceland's mix-up is the example. With fewer players back, an error in your own zone is harder to cover.

Sudden death, and how long it lasts

Overtime is sudden death, which means the first team to score wins and the game stops on the spot. The IIHF rule book gives different lengths for different games. In a round-robin game, overtime lasts up to 5 minutes, after a 3-minute break while the ice is cleaned. In a playoff, relegation, classification or bronze medal game, it lasts up to 10 minutes.

If nobody scores, a shootout follows. Each team picks five shooters, they take alternate shots, and tie-break rounds follow if it is still level.

The gold medal game is the exception. The rule book says it plays repeating sudden-death periods with no stated maximum, with a 15-minute break between them, until somebody scores. There is no shootout in a final, so the game has to be settled on the ice.

Thailand and Iceland played for gold, so this last rule is the one that applied in principle. The rule book describes the IIHF's top-level championships. Buzzer's report and the IIHF's report both call the goal an overtime winner, but neither gives the length of the period, so the exact Division III format is not confirmed here.

Penalties in overtime

Penalties still count. If a team is penalised, play goes to 4-on-3. If both teams take minor penalties at the same stoppage, it stays 3-on-3. A team always keeps at least three skaters on the ice, and a coach can pull the goalkeeper for an extra skater, according to the rule book.

That makes a late hit in overtime very expensive indeed.

How Thailand got there

The tournament ran at the Skenderija Sports Arena in Sarajevo with six teams, split into two groups of three. The top two in each group advanced to the semi-finals, and the third-place teams played a relegation game. Semi-final winners met for gold.

Thailand went through undefeated. They scored 38 goals and finished with a plus-28 goal difference. Their coach was Tewin Chartsuwan. Promotion is the prize: Thailand moves up to Division III, Group A at the 2027 U18 World Championship, the IIHF reported.

Individual awards followed the same line. Thailand's Kingston Pan was named top goalkeeper, Theetachthan Luang-On top forward, and Iceland's Saemundur Thorsteinsson top defender.

The host nation's good day

Bosnia and Herzegovina, the hosts, won bronze with a 4-1 win over Turkmenistan on the final day. Faris Čapin scored twice, according to the IIHF.

Following the smaller sports

Most platforms skip this kind of event. Buzzer covered the Sarajevo tournament day by day, from the group results to the final day, including the preview of the Thailand and Iceland final. Live coverage of other events, including Bosnian kickboxing, polo and football, is on Buzzer Arena TV.

Two skaters fewer, one mistake, 32 seconds left. That is overtime.

Cover photo by Chris DeSort.