Germany remained tied for a long time in the quarter-finals of the Under-20 Ice Hockey World Championships in Edmonton. Head coach Antti Pennanen admitted that he was worried about playing underpowered.
17.8.•Updated 17.8.
The Finnish under-20 national ice hockey team secured their place in the semi-finals of the World Cup in Edmonton. Germany put the Young Lions in a surprisingly tight spot, but Finland eventually took the quarter-final with 5–2 goals.
The semifinal match started at ten in the morning local time, but despite waking up at five in the morning, Finland was ready for the start of the match.
– I am really satisfied with how the team prepared. Early morning. First we had breakfast, then at eight o’clock pasta, so it was a new situation for us, head coach Antti Pennanen commented to .
The struggle was two-fold from Nuori Leijon, especially in special situations. Finland scored three overtime goals, but Germany managed twice as the Young Lions played underpowered. Pennanen admitted that he is worried about the team playing underpowered.
– Yes, I am. We have to improve it, that’s for sure. We will think about it together and improve, Pennanen stated.
However, he rose to a decisive role Roby Järventie. He scored two goals in the match and also provided two assists leading to goals. Both of the goals were seen with superiority.
– We have so many different options. Many can shoot the puck well. I got a few good passes and was able to shoot pretty close. Glad you went in, Järventie formulated modestly.
Järventie has been in a good mood at the Junior World Championships, as he has scored four goals and a total of nine (4+5) power points in five matches.
– Järventie was excellent today. In any case, he has developed wildly from what he has been. It’s nice to see how he struggles, hairs and wins pucks. Above all, it’s sweet to see how he has developed, Pennanen praises.
Finland’s semifinal opponent will survive in the night’s matches. In other matches, Sweden will face Latvia, Canada will face Switzerland, and the United States will face the Czech Republic.
A sharp start from the young Lions
Finland scored its opening goal in a beautiful way and with quick passes in 3:37. Center Joel Määtä played Kasper Simontaipale, who played a wall pass with Järventie. Thus, Simontaival was allowed to hit the puck into an empty goal.
Later, Finland succeeded in its first superiority, when the captain Roni Hirvonen on the other hand, he was allowed to shoot into the void from Simontaipale’s pass. Hirvonen seemed to be in the mood, as he later hit the post with his shot.
– We woke up at 5:15 today. One nap and off to the gym to ride the bike. It wasn’t the easiest morning, but you have to adapt to everything. I think we were ready to play from the start, says Järventie.
Rossmy struck twice
After their superiority goal, Finland was fooled into the ice, from which Germany immediately struck. Bennett Rossmy was a hawk in front of the goal and shot past the loose puck Leevi Meriläinen. Suomen Alivoima has been weak in the tournament, as it has worked only a little over 44 percent of the time.
Instead, the dominance has been wild. Finland scored its third goal from a special situation, when Florian Bugl couldn’t knock down Järventie’s wrist shot.
In the second set, Finland took their foot off the gas. The Young Lions couldn’t really get anything done and only had two shots at the goal.
On the other hand, Germany, who shot nine times, struck with superiority when Rossmy wrapped himself in front of the goal and lifted the puck into the top corner.
Finland entered the final with its back against the wall. However, in time 46:22 Nuoret Leijonat got a relief success with superiority, when Järventie shot straight from the pass into the upper corner handsomely Aleksi Heimosalmen (0+2) pass.
Finland once again struck with superiority, when Määtt succeeded from Järventie’s pass. Got the second assist in the goal Joakim Kemellwho collected his second assist of the night.
– We still have a lot of room to improve, but I have a lot of faith in the team and that we will improve and be at our best in the next games, Järventie concluded.