Finland will not be able to compete on an individual level against the top countries in the next few years either, writes Urheilu’s Simo Arkko.
Simo Arkkourheilhu reporter
GOTHENBURG. Finland’s World Cup tournament ended on Friday with a bitter defeat in the bronze medal game, when the Czech Republic won 8–5 with last-minute goals.
In the end, Finland’s games ended with the problems on the defensive end that it had at the beginning of the tournament, which had already started disastrously.
In the end, the puck defense was not able to play close enough in the bronze medal match. On the other hand, it could also be a matter of fatigue: The more rested Czech Republic was at its best in the final set.
All in all, Finland lost the bronze medal in an unimaginable way. Conceding a total of six goals in the final set was a catastrophic meltdown.
Although Finland finally made it to the medal games after difficulties, the current situation cannot be lulled.
Finland has a lot to develop, especially in player development. While Sweden had a total of seven first-round reservations, Finland had none.
The games were definitely for Finland and for the one who will continue as the head coach according to media reports Lauri Mikkola instructive.
Finland once again discovered how it does best: by relying more or less on Our game.
On the other hand, I’m already tired of these two words. However, it is a fact that it was the Finnish way of playing that lifted the Young Lions from the brink of a complete disaster.
Before the start of the games, Mikkola described the style of play as that the Junior World Championships are skating and wrestling competitions, and Finland must be able to maintain its striking ability at all times.
Of course, he reminded us about puck control and pacing the game, but the first thing he mentioned was skating and fighting. Finland wanted to be active.
In the first matches, the game was very confused. It looked like the players didn’t quite know what to do either.
– Would someone please tell me the playbook to rely on, because it’s really hard to see it from the game, ice hockey coach Pekka Virta stated in Iltalehti After the Germany match.
After this, things changed. Finland held meetings with each other and the focus of the game shifted more to controlling the puck. Finland kept the five tight, and did not play quickly in the same way. It slowed down the game, took late starts and got long attacks with the strength of its five players. Together.
With this way of playing, Nuoret Leijonat was able to close the gap in individuals.
Finland did not have future superstars like Sweden, USA or Canada at the Games. However, it had enough scope and individuals to succeed with a familiar recipe for success.
The players gained confidence and in the end Finland narrowly missed out on the final.
This was the method that worked for this particular team. Maybe also for the group of the next few years.
After all, Finland will not be able to compete against the top countries with individuals in the following years either. Currently, Finland cannot produce top individuals as it did in the late 2010s.
The Finnish team did not have any first-round reservations, although for example Konsta Helenius will probably be booked at the beginning of next summer. The situation of the next years’ age groups has not caused cheers either.
Even though I’m a fan of active, skating-powerful and fast-paced puck, in the next few years, Nuorten Leijonien will probably have to rely on the still-familiar Suomi-puck recipe for success in order to succeed.
The youth’s own national series are a separate matter. In them, you should by no means think about the playbook and success, but let the boys play.
In a dream situation, a skating and active style of play in the youth leagues would increase the skill level of Finnish players in different areas of the game so that Finland would no longer have to hide the shortcomings of its individuals by slowing down the game.