BRATISLAVA (Reuters) - Marius Holtet's four strikes lifted Norway to a crushing 5-2 win over France at the world championship on Monday and secured them the last available slot for the quarter-finals which start on Wednesday.
Norway join Olympic champions Canada, holders Czech Republic, United States, Sweden, Russia, Finland and Germany in the last eight.
France's Laurent Meunier then scored in the second period but Holtet, who plays for Farjestads Karlstad in Sweden's Elitserien, netted four minutes later and again in the third.
Hosts Slovakia managed a 4-1 win over Denmark in a farewell game at the tournament for both teams.
"It is hard for me to talk. Fans gave us an amazing goodbye. I hope that our successors will pay them back in the future," team captain Pavol Demitra told reporters.
Demitra, 36, who played for the NHL's Vancouver Canucks and Minnesota Wild among others, said the championship was his last for the national team.
(Reporting by Martin Santa, Editing by Mark Meadows)
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