According to expert Topi Nättinen, Finland made atypical mistakes in the Czech match. Goalkeeper Leevi Meriläinen’s grip left much to be desired.
Finland’s under-20 national ice hockey team won the World Cup tournament in their second game in the winning goal contest against the Czech Republic with goals 4–3. Sports expert Top Nättinen highlights three highlights from Finland’s playing.
1. The game left big question marks
Even though Finland got only two points, Topi Nättinen emphasizes the importance of the victory. One additional point can be valuable when determining block placements.
Behind the result, however, the game was quiet. The head coach Antti Pennanen stated after the game that he was surprised how difficult the game turned out to be in the end. However, he continued that neither team played well.
According to Nättinen, Leijonat did not lose their game discipline, but many tried to solve situations by force with individual performances.
– Although there was a victory, the game left big question marks tactically and game-wise. The offensive game only worked from time to time. This even left a sloppy and such a frustrated image. “Finland didn’t get into proper supply chains and there were atypical mistakes,” says Nättinen.
The grips of the young Lions improved a little after the initial stickiness. However, the Czech Republic, which played well tactically, did not let Finland off easy.
– Finland didn’t really find a way to break the Czech defense. Of course credit to the Czech Republic, they were well prepared. But basically, Finland should have been able to play a better puck game.
2. In Meriläinen’s terms, there is something to be desired
Finland’s number one goalkeeper Leevi Meriläinen was uncertain in the match. Jaroslav Chmelar surprised Meriläinen from far away from a small corner after only six and a half minutes. In the third set, Meriläinen, on the other hand, blocked several times in front of them. Eventually Jan Mysak shot the puck from the negative angle through the goalkeeper’s pads and into the goal.
According to Nättinen, Meriläinen didn’t make stupid mistakes, but he was left with an uncertain image. However, Meriläinen was the man in the game for the winning goal, even though the attempts were not the best.
– The statistics may show that the game was good and there were good saves, but it did not inspire confidence. There was too much uncertainty, some of which led to the goal. Tolerable game, but not enough in this tournament.
Before the tournament, Pennanen made a tough decision when he left Kärppie’s number one goalkeeper by Joel Blomqvist off the team. According to Nättinen, there is no need to worry about whether Blomqvist should be involved.
– He could just as well have played a bad match at this stage, which would have made it difficult to plan further.
Pennanen revealed after the match that Juha Jatkola saves against Slovakia. This was also part of the original plan.
– Meriläinen’s actions left a lot to be desired. We can’t talk about a goalkeeper crisis, but it left some question marks, says Nättinen.
– If Jatkola plays a top match, it will be interesting to see if he gets to play in the Canada match or if the coaching trusts the original plan. That is, they give Meriläinen the mantle of the number one goalkeeper and a clear signal that you are also trusted in the quarter-final match.
Finland’s number one center Aatu Räty Huhki spent more than 24 minutes of playing time in the match, i.e. he played, for example, a good minute more than the defender Topi Niemelä. From first chain platforms as well Roni Hirvonen (21.46) and Joakim Kemell (20:33) plenty of minutes passed.
– Be that as it may, we played 65 minutes, Räty played 24 minutes and some were well under 15 minutes. It’s not a good thing in terms of the load, says Nättinen.
– It does not enable high-quality offensive play if the load on some players is too heavy and they have to go on the field with less recovery.
Nättinen understands that the game was aimed at winning and individual players want success. According to the expert, Finland could have played with a wider lineup only in the second match of the tournament.
– This could have been a conscious choice, since the next game is only on Sunday, so this point can be overplayed. I would like to see in the future that we play on four fields. When you are a little more recovered, the solutions are better. All in rarely works, says Nättinen.