EDMONTON | The Finns have been able to count on their power play since the start of the World Junior Hockey Championship, and it didn’t stop on Wednesday.
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Antti Pennanen’s side beat tough Germany 5-2 with four goals with the man advantage, including two from Roby Jarventie. The Ottawa Senators prospect added two assists in the victory.
The Finns have scored 13 of their 27 power play goals since the start of the competition.
This production – impressive indeed – could however become problematic in the semi-finals if the Finns do not manage to take more advantage of their chances at five against five.
“The goal is to score more goals than the opponent, so I don’t think it matters how we score our goals, as long as we score,” said Kasper Puutio.
A POINT IN CANADA
The Finns played the first game of the day on Wednesday and after the game they still did not know the identity of their opponent in Friday’s semi-final match.
However, everything indicated that they would meet Canada again and already head coach Pennanen was preparing the ground.
“For us, the important thing will be our puck management. You will have to be able to control it in order to put pressure on their territory. When we did that, I saw great possibilities in our last game against them. In their defensive zone, I don’t know how good they are. That’s really the main thing I noticed against them. »
Remember that Junior Team Canada won 6-3 against the Finns in the last game of the preliminary round, Monday night.
SWEDEN HAS BEEN HOT
In the next match, Latvia gave the Swedes a run for their money, and a third-period goal from captain Emil Andrae saw them overcome their tough opponent with a score of 2 to 1.
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
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World Juniors, Sweden vs. Latvia
Photo QMI Agency, John Morris -
“We talked about it a lot before the game: the key for us was to work harder than them,” Andrae said. We knew they would block a lot of shots, play hard and try to win. It was kind of like their Super Bowl. »
For Latvia, this summer World Juniors will remain one of the most important moments in the history of hockey in this country.
Not only did they win the first game in their history in the preliminary round, but they also secured a place in the elimination round for the first time.
“It’s hard to appreciate what we’ve accomplished so far. On the other hand, we will take positives from this tournament. There will be another World Juniors in December, and we intend to get people talking about us. »