The two nations knew victories today would see them progress into the next round, with Scotland the first of the Group A heavyweights to take to the ice.

A strong display saw the Scottish team beat Belarus 9-5, with their fifth win preserving their 100 per cent record in Kazan.

"It wasn’t our best performance but we got the win that we needed," said Cameron Bryce, Scotland’s skip.

"It was our first objective, get to the play-offs and then see what happens, take it a game at a time and hopefully we can get all the way to the end.

"We’re pretty happy with our five wins just now and hopefully we’ll make it six going into the knockout stages."

Japan defeated Romania 9-2 in their opening match of the day to effectively seal their place in the play-offs, before a 5-3 win over defending champions Norway sealed their progression.

The Japanese team lie second after five wins and one defeat, while the Norwegian team face a battle to keep hold of their title as they remain behind Italy and New Zealand in the Group A standings.

An 8-4 victory over Slovakia saw Sweden advance from Group B, with their perfect record of five wins keeping them level with fellow qualifiers Hungary.

The Hungarian team warmed up for tomorrow’s top of the table clash by beating England 7-2, leaving their opponents sweating over a play-off spot, as the loss leaves the English team third.

Having won their first five matches the Canadian team were effectively assured of advancing from Group D, but they ensured their spot in the next round by defeating South Korea 5-3.

Latvia recorded a 10-2 win over Belgium to move joint second with the United States, with both teams boasting a record of four victories and two defeats.

After Germany and Turkey booked play-off places yesterday, Switzerland became the third nation to advance from Group E.

They ended Turkey’s unbeaten record by triumphing 8-1, which saw them move level with their opponents in the standings.

Russia remain the only team through from Group C, but the hosts look likely to be joined by the Czech Republic after their 6-3 win over Spain pushed them up to second.