#54/2013 IIHF WJC Blog 

 

 

 

Biscuits and Breezers

 

World Junior Championships

Day 6

  

  

         Welcome back to another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! Well the group schedule games have come and gone, but now here come the knockout rounds. Yes the regular schedule games were stressful but these games will be EVEN more stressful. These are the rounds that will make or break a team. One loss could end a country's stay in this tournament. Not all teams are involved in these rounds either. Some countries, for example Germany and Latvia, will be battling it out in the relegation rounds for a spot in next year's tournament instead of fighting for the gold. These rounds will be especially stressful for the Swedes as returning champions. Do you think that they will be champions again this year? I can't say who I think will be the champs this year because there are so many strong teams this year. For example you have Team Canada. Team Sweden, Team USA, and Team Russia. They have really bumped up the level of play this year. I am very impressed with this because a) this means NHL players in the future will be so much more talented and b) it helps pick out the talent more so that they can help train the younger players. I guess we should get onto the game reviews so let's get on that! There are four games today and they all had really high scores so this should be interesting!

 

 

 

Game 1 - Czech Republic vs. Switzerland

 

     The Czech Republic got into the knockout round by pushing by gaining some important points against Switzerland to gain their knockout spot and as did Switzerland by pushing the game into overtime and also gaining a quaterfinal bid. Switzerland lost to Finland in overtime so now they are in a three way tie for second place in Group A between the Czechs, the Finns, and the Swiss. Only two of these teams could advance so this game was a must-win for both teams. The final score of the game was 4-3 in the Czech Republic's favor going into overtime. Matej Beran started things off for the Czechs just 3 minutes and 46 seconds into the first period. Swiss came out swinging with a goal from Christian Marti at the 10 minute mark to even things out before the first intermission. But going into the second, it was the Czechs favor scoring twice very early into the period with goals from Michal Svihalek and Tomas Hyka. Down two, many doubted that the Swiss would actually  return to the quarterfinal run. But the Swiss were not ones to go down so light and effortlessly. 10 minutes remaining in regulation time, they kicked it up a notch. Star player Christoph Bertschy scored to cut the lead to one. 6 minutes later team mate Dario Simion scored the last goal in regulation time to force overtime and his second of the tournament. Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks prospect, scored the winning goal for the Czech Republic and secured the team a quarterfinal spot. Even though they lost, the Swiss gained one point, which propelled them past Team Finland in the Group A category. Being the only surprise team in the quarterfinals, Switzerland will take on Russia to play for a semifinal date with defending champs, Team Sweden. The Czech Republic will take on the USA in the quarterfinal with Canada patiently waiting for the winners.

 

Game 2 - USA vs. Slovakia

 

   This was a must win game for Team USA after two losses in a row and sitting in a tie for third place with Slovakia. Either they won this game and advanced to the medal rounds or they turned back and went home. Well they did win. 9-3. Many players scored their first goals of the tournament and found their stride again. Slovakia will go against Germany in the relegation rounds. American center Cole Bardeau put the USA on the board with a breakaway goal 4 minutes into the first period. But Slovakia wasn't far behind when Matus Matis scored just 14 seconds later. Taking charger American captain Jake McCabe stormed off the Slovakians scoring again for the US 51 seconds later with an assist from Jim Vesey. John Gaudreau finally scored his first goal in the middle of the first. Adam Nagy was placed on the bench and Patrik Romancik was replaced to fend off the strong USA team. But he didn't do as well either. Mike Rielly and star player Jacob Trouba scored on Romancik to set a 5 goal period. This was Trouba's fourth goal of the tournament. Trying a last chance attempt, Richard Mraz scored for Team Slovakia thus entering the first intermission 5-2 in Team USA's favor. Vince Trochek shined for the Americans scoring twice and adding an assist to conclude the second period of play. These were his first two of the tournament. Matus Matis scored his second goal of the game, but the Americans knew they had this game in the bag. Alex Galchenyuk scored his second goal of the tournament to make a total of 7 points, trailing behind Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' 11 points. John Gaudreau scored again in this game to make it 9-3 for the Americans. Team USA will go against the Czech Republic on Wednesday as favorites to against Team Canada in the semifinals. Slovakia will play Latvia in the relegation round Thursday.

 

 

Game 3 - Sweden vs. Finland

 

     This is one of the games I have been looking forward to the most. Already clinching the top spot in Group A, Finland needed just one single point to advance. Well that point was taken by Sweden in a devastating 7-4 win. Sweden was 3-0 and had a three point edge. One point would keep Team Finland out of the relegation rounds and keep them in the running as the pre-tournament favorites. Defeat and a one way ticket to the relegation round was seeming closer and closer for the Finns as the Swedes had a 3-0 lead going into the second. The three goals were from Alexander Wennberg, Robert Hagg and Victor Rask. However, the Finns made a tremendous comeback scoring 3 unanswered goals to tie the game up. Joel Armia led Finland with 2 goals. Late into the second period, Sweden came back from the brink with key players Viktor Arvidsson and captain Filip Forsberg scored just 44 seconds apart. Ville Jarvelainen scored for Finalnd to bring the game within one in the third. But Viktor Arvidsson and Emil Molin struck for Team Sweden late in the third to seal their team's victory. Crushed the Finns will play Germany in the first relegation round game on Wednesday. This was a surprising and very early exit for the Finns. Sweden will await their opponent for whoever wins against Russia and Switzerland.

 

 

Game 4 - Canada vs. Russia

 

     This was the final game in the group stages. Both medal favorites, Team Russia and Team Canada were facing off looking for a last chance to advance. Surprisingly a strong Team Russia was beat 4-1 against a driven Team Canada. This win was fought for the prize of a quaterfinal bye. Both goaltenders, Malcolm Subban and Andrey Makarov were doing very well, blocking most of the shots given to them. The first to score was Canadian defenseman Dougie Hamilton at 14 minutes in. This would be his first goal of the tournament. Less than 2 minutes later Canadian Mark Scheifele scored against Makarov to lift Team Canada 2-0 over the Russians. Yet, the Russians prevailed with almost no time at all to score from the stick of Nikita Kucherov. The Canadians out shot the Russians 48-22. Makarov was doing great in the second only letting one goal in from Jonathan Drouin. Before this game Drouin was allowed to play on the top line with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Mark Scheifele from Coach Steve Spott. For the second straight game, Malcolm Subban was impeccable in the net stopping 21 out of 22 shots. With just seconds before the end of the third, Jonathan Huberdeau flung one into the empty net to seal the 4-1 victory for the Canadians. Team Canada will now be the top team in Group B with 12 points. Canada will await to play the winner of the USA vs. Czech Republic game. Russia will play Switzerland for a chance again against Sweden in the semifinals.

3 Stars of the Games

1. John Gaudreau USA
  After not scoring at all during the first games of the tournament, John quenched his thirst by scoring twice and having an assist. His two goals helped win over Slovakia in a 9-3 victory. The Boston College star was expected to be one of the tournament's top scorers. He will need to stay red hot to accomplish and lift his team to win a medal.

2. Viktor Arvidsson Sweden
    Viktor was a spectacular player scoring 2 goals and an assist to help eliminate Team Finland. An empty netter gave Arvidsson his two goal total for this game today. He is now tied for the most goals scored in the tournament at the continuous four.

3. Malcolm Subban Canada
    Malcolm was great in the net by saving 21 out of 22 shots from the Russians. He has been impeccable in the net for two straight games. He helped Canada especially in the second and third periods to secure a quarterfinal spot.

      Thanks for reading another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! Every blog will be filled with updated hockey news, player reviews, and much more! Until next time remember, don't get your breezers in a bunch because hockey is always around the corner. Remember, it's always a great day for hockey and it's not just a sport it's a lifestyle!