OSTRAVA — Germany took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three relegation series with a 4-0 win over Kazakhstan.
Hendrick Hane stopped 23 shots for the shutout.
Lukas Reichel, Louis Brune, John Peterka and Dominik Bokk scored for Germany.
Game two is Saturday.
The winner will play in next year’s world junior in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alta., along with the eight 2020 quarterfinalists and Austria, which won the promotion tournament.