Urheilu’s expert Topi Nättinen reminds us that judges’ decisions are often tied in the long run. According to the expert, the tournament showed that Finland can win even with weaker performances.
The Young Lions World Cup tournament in Edmonton ended with a bitter defeat in the final, when Canada took the overtime and the world championship with 3–2 goals.
In the extra round, Finland was inches away from the world championship, but Canada’s number one star Mason McTavish missed his bat Topi Niemelän to the company. Moments later, Canada celebrated gold Kent Johnson by hitting
– Great hockey match. The arc of the drama was again wonderful between Finland and Canada. Finland built a great match, even though there were many setbacks within the match as well. Finland can be proud of its performance, Urheilu’s expert Top Nättinen comment.
The final was not easy for Nuori Leijon. Canada pushed hard, especially at the beginning, and Finland had no chance of attacking. Nuoret Leijonat slowly improved their game as the match progressed and finally tied the game in the final set Aleksi Heimosalmen and Joakim Kemellin with goals.
– If you want to use some merit logic, then in the big picture, Canada earned the championship based on the entire tournament. However, in a single match, anything can happen and Finland could have deserved it, because they fought against windmills. Finland had to play a lot underpowered, says Nättinen.
The story continues after the pictures.
The coolers were surprising
In the second period, the Young Lions got no less than five of the two minutes, and in general the ice went in favor of Canada 7–1. Nättinen wonders how the balance of the ice was as seen in such an even struggle.
The shots were recorded for Canada 33–31 and the saves for Finland 30–29.
– It’s really rare that there is an even ice hockey match and the ice hockey ratio is 1:7. I don’t mean that the ice should be equal. In a way, I’m surprised that the cooldowns went so evenly in a match where shots and saves were equal. The result was roughly the same, says Nättinen.
– However, it is not the first time in world history that a bigger player benefits from the referee’s line on some level.
However, the expert emphasizes that complaining about judges is ultimately a zero-sum game.
– Sometimes in history Finland has benefited from them and now it did not benefit as much as Canada. In the long run, they are pretty much even, says Nättinen.
However, Finland overcame each of its inferior forces without a setback. Even in the first group, Suomen Alivoima was very weak.
– Fortunately, Finland fought its inferiority nicely. This did not affect the judging, although it was certainly not a successful evening in their opinion either.
Fluctuating tournament
The tournament was fluctuating from Finland. The upper hand worked well throughout the tournament, but the underpowered game had some problems at first. In addition, the five-on-five game fell short many times, and Finland did not always seem mentally ready.
However, in the last two matches, Finland got its underpowered game right and finally scored two goals in the final with five against five.
According to Nättinen, the Young Lions showed their patience in the tournament.
– I am really proud for Finnish hockey that Finland achieved silver and was inches away from the world championship, even though the game was weak in places. We can also win tournaments by playing poorly.
According to Nättinen, a lot has changed since, for example, ten years ago. Even at that time, the place in the semi-finals was a “super surprise”.
– Finland’s basic routine and belief in one’s own doing is currently at such a high level from one age group to another. This single game was a manifestation of the whole system. When needed, Finland is at its best. That is rare in Finnish football.