U20 Hockey: Dramatic Empty-Net Winner at World Championships

In overtime, the Slovaks took a risk and tried to lock the Czech youngsters in their attacking zone, but Curran poked the puck into a two-on-one renumbering with Benák, who selflessly returned the puck to his partner.

After 137 seconds of the set time, it was done and the national team could rejoice in the 2:1 win in overtime.

The Czech selection completed the turnaround in the match, which offered its shooting and playing superiority, but the finish was lacking. The Slovaks showed a well-organized hockey performance and patiently waited for chances. One of the few was offered to them by a power play from which they were able to open the scoring.

In the meantime, Klíma, Titlbach and Poletín blocked their chances, but they succeeded in the replay in the 45th minute, when Benák robbed the Slovak defender of the puck behind the goal and offered him an easy scoring opportunity. Both Novotný and Klím had the chance to decide, but they failed. On the other side, Oršulák caught Pobežal, and thus the aforementioned curious moment in overtime determined the winner.

The Czech coaches now have to decide on the final form of the roster, from which they still have to cut one defender. There are currently nine of them available, Mrtka did not play the general. The adjustment of the nomination should take place even before the move to the venue of the championship in Minneapolis, where the twenty players will play the tournament on Saturday, December 27 from 2:30 a.m. our time with a match against Canada.