At the same time, the first match aroused cautious optimism under Ještěd. The Indians had ten losses in a row, while the North Bohemians had ten wins, and on the ice the difference in the confidence of both teams was noticeable.
“If anyone thought it was going to be easy, I certainly wasn’t. I knew that it would be a very difficult series with Pilsen. He has a quality team, which proved this even in the season. Although they had a black streak, three of the four games with them were very even in the regular season. I certainly didn’t expect us to beat them 3-0 in the game, although that would have been nice. On Saturday, we continue and go to win the next match,” said Liberec captain Petr Jelínek.
Sometimes it’s just good to forget about the match as quickly as possible… A weekend full of hockey awaits us in Pilsen. We will be happy for numerous support. #BTL pic.twitter.com/VevVPdFxKP
— White Tigers Liberec (@hcbilitygri) March 9, 2023
“The first game was influenced by our two quick goals, so it turned a bit in our favor. Now the opponent gave us the first goal and it bounced a bit. They played excellently for the whole sixty minutes and we didn’t play well,” Liberec coach Patrik Augusta tried to explain the reason for two completely different performances in two days.
Photo: Radek Petrášek, CTK
The gesture of failure of the Liberec goalkeeper Petr Kváč in the match with Pilsen.Photo: Radek Petrašek, CTK
The last time the White Tigers were outclassed in such a way in the playoffs was Sparta less than two years ago, when they won 5:0 in the semi-finals under Ještěd. Nevertheless, the North Bohemians managed the series and advanced to the final with Třinec.
“Nothing is happening, it’s 1:1. Nobody said it would be easy. How we react on Saturday will be important. Now we played a bad game, from start to finish the opponent was better. We didn’t get scoring opportunities and it turned out to be a clear result for the opponent,” said Augusta, whose team fell behind 0-2 in the third period and conceded four more shots.
“The third period didn’t work out for us, I’m sorry. This time we got the short end of the stick. Unfortunately, Pilsen outplayed us in almost everything, so they deservedly won. But it’s still just one match, the series is 1:1 and we’re moving on,” concluded Jelínek. The series continues on Saturday on the ice of Pilsen.
