The World Junior Championship kicked off yesterday in Edmonton, Alberta. Three matches took place and all were a great welcome back to hockey season. In the first game, Slovakia faced off against Switzerland. In the second matchup, Finland was up against Germany. The third and final match of Christmas day was a historic matchup between Russia and the United States. All teams played with fast pace, tenaciousness, and the urgency to win every little battle. Let's take a deeper look into these games, especially the game between Russia and USA.
Game 1 -- Slovakia vs. Switzerland
Yesterday at 2 p.m. ET, the first puck drop in a while occurred in a matchup between Slovakia and Switzerland. This first matchup consisted of a hard-fought battle and some after whistle scrapping. This game was scoreless going into the second half of the third period. Both teams had great opportunities, it was hard to say who was going to win deep into this game. Simon Latkoczy, the goalie for Slovakia had a great first game. He had many great saves, but one that stood out was a one-on-one save with three seconds left in the second period. It was a great chance for Switzerland, but Latkoczy shut it down. It took until 5:43 left in the third period for Slovakia to finally net one, Roman Faith was able to get his hands on a rebound and jam it into the back of the net past Switzerland's goalie Thibault Fatton. As the rest of the match unwinded, it got a little scrappy and the game went to a four on four in the last twenty seconds. When the game ended, Slovakia's goalie Latkoczy was awarded player of the game, it was well deserved after a perfect game with 28 saves. Slovakia left the rink with a 1-0 victory. Overall, a great first matchup and I'm excited to see how both these teams will do in the rest of the tournament.
Final -- Slovakia(1) - Switzerland(0)
Game 2 -- Finland vs. Germany
Yesterday at 6 p.m. ET, Germany and Finland had a skilled matchup that was very fun to watch. It was very apparent that the Germans had a significant amount of fewer players than Finland. Although, that did not stop them from battling hard and putting pucks in the net. The game got off to a fast start, Finland's Anton Lundell netted a beautiful goal 3 minutes and 38 seconds into the first period to put Finland up 1-0. As the game went on and hit 8 minutes left in the first period, Finland led the shot category 13-0. As the first unwinded, it was easy to see that Finland was the better team. With 12.4 seconds left in the first period, Finland's Aku Raty crashed the net after a shot from Henri Nikkanen and managed to push the puck to the back of the net to make it 2-0. At the start of the second, Finland still led the shot category 16-4. Going into the second, Finland was able to net yet another goal. Mikeal Pyyhtia makes it 3-0 after netting a beautiful set up from Mikko Kokkonen and Aku Raty. The Germans finally managed to put one up on the board with 14:26 left in the second. On a power play, Samuel Dube sneaks up from the corner and is able to beat Finland's goalie Kari Piiroinen far blocker side to make it 3-1. The Germans clearly picked their play up in the second, Tim Stutzle is able to get one to the back of the cage with 9:25 left in the second period to make it a one-goal game. Finland, fearing a comeback, fights back and nets another. Finland's Topi Niemela ripped a shot from the point with 7:50 left in the second period to make it 4-2. On a power play late in the second period, Finland's Henri Nikkanen sent a pass out front of the net and deflects off a German skate and into the net to put Finland up 5-2. The third period was a battle, Finland was trying to maintain the lead and Germany was applying a ton of pressure to the puck. Florian Elias nets Germany's third goal about halfway into the third, giving them a little more hope for victory. The game ends and Finland ends up on top with a 5-3 victory. Overall, it was a pretty good game. Finland displayed their talent and played very well. Germany is definitely hurt being short on guys, but they are still a very competitive team with phenomenal talent.
Final -- Finland(5) - Germany(3)
Game 3 -- Russia vs. USA
The Americans faced off against the Russians last night at 9:30 p.m. ET. In an electrifying matchup, we saw hits, flashy goals, and after whistle scraps. Nothing better than a historic rivalry showing its presence. The game started off back and forth, each team was getting some good opportunities. Russia takes advantage first and goes up 1-0 with 11:53 left in the first period. Vasili Ponomaryov tips a one-timer taken by Artemi Knyazev to put some pressure on the Americans. Deeper into the first period, America's captain Cameron York nets a huge game-tying goal with 5:59 left in the first period. At the end of the first, both teams had equal opportunities and good puck control. With 16:48 left in the second, Zakhar Bardokov puts the Russians up 2-1 with a break-away goal. As the Russian's went up another goal, they continued to lay impactful hits down on Team USA. A bad American turnover leaves the puck out front of Spencer Knight for Russia's Vasili Ponomaryov to snap into the back of the net to put the soviets up 3-1 with 8:52 left in the second. Shortly after that, Spencer Knight went to play the puck in the corner is not able to connect a pass when throwing it up the boards. Ilja Safonov was waiting at the blue line, he managed to pick Knight's pass off and throw it in the back of the net before Knight can return. Team USA was now down 4-1 with 7:45 left in the second period, Spencer Knight was pulled, and in came Dustin Wolf. This was a wake-up call for Team USA. The second period ends and both teams had very good opportunities to score. It was an even match within the players, the difference was Russia's goalie Yaroslav Askerov. He played tremendous, playing pucks way out of the net with confidence and making back-to-back saves on separate occasions. The third period starts off unsettled and some big hits came from both teams. Halfway into the third period, Askerov leaves a rebound out front and America's John Farinacci manages to get the puck into the net to make the score 4-2. Late in the third period, Team USA was gifted power play. Trevor Zegras takes advantage of the power play and rips a shot from the point, it hit off the right pipe and in. It was a highlight-reel shot and gave Team USA a fighting chance. With 1:01 left in regulation, Team USA calls a timeout. Wolf was pulled and an extra attacker play was being discussed. Team Russia managed to defend the extra attacker and Yegor Chinahkov is able to score an empty netter to put Russia up 5-3 with 29 seconds left in the game. Russia ends up winning and Ponomaryov is declared player of the game for his two-goal performance. Overall, this was an extremely enjoyable hockey game. There was after whistle scraps and chirping, you can't get better than that. Both teams have stud talent and guys who will lay you out. Russia's goalie Askerov is someone to definitely watch out for, he has raw talent. All in all, Team USA played a great first game. Although they lost, we saw the competitive edge and skill they bring to the table. I'm excited to see how both these teams make out in the res of the WJC.
Final -- Russia(5) - USA(3)
Standings After Day 1
Slovakia, Finland, and Russia were day one winners. These teams all have three points and the losers of the day have zero points. With such few games played it is hard to determine who will end out on top. In conclusion, in the next couple of days, we should be able to tell what teams surge over the others.
From the first three games, we can determine that Russia is a powerhouse team per usual. Team USA is solid, but they can be better. Finland is a good team with some proven talent. Slovakia has a solid group, who knows if they can take out a top team. Switzerland will have trouble with the betters teams. Finally, I think Germany will have the toughest time out of these six teams just because they have a smaller roster than other teams. Overall, we were blessed with some great hockey this Christmas and I'm certainly looking forward to the rest of the tournament.