The chances of the Slovakian under-20 ice hockey team are equal before the World Cup quarter-final match with Finland. This was said by the team’s coach Ivan Feneš before Thursday’s meeting. Slovak hockey players will play in the quarter-finals against Suomi on Thursday from 23:00 CET.
Photo: MATHIAS BERGELD/BILDBYRŹ/Shutte / Shutterstock Editorial / Profimedia
Slovak ice hockey players are preparing for the quarterfinals at the U20 WC.
On Thursday evening, the young Slovaks will have a replay of the quarter-finals from the previous championship, where they lost to the Finns 3:4 after extra time.
The last time they met the Nordic team was a few days before the ongoing tournament, they lost clearly 0:6 in the preparatory match.
“It is an opponent with whom we have already met three times in a year. We won once, we lost twice. It’s a hockey country and we are such a dwarf compared to it, but I believe that we will play for it with more heart,” said Feneš in an interview for the official website of the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).
Slovaks took 3rd place in B-group and closed the basic phase with a Sunday duel with Kazakhstan.
At the end of the third period, they lost a two-goal advantage during their own power play, and their triumph was decided by defender Maxim Štrbák in overtime.
However, according to Fenes, group results are deleted in the elimination phase.
“In the quarter-finals, a completely new competition begins and the chances are equal on both sides. It will be a match about the details, perhaps decisive power plays, exploited weaknesses and, above all, the performances of the goalkeepers,” added the 47-year-old coach.
His charges had a rest program on New Year’s Eve. They had a ceremonial lunch at the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Ottawa, later met with Slovaks living in Canada and then moved on to joint team building.
Feneš thinks that the meeting with the Slovak fans was a great boost for the players.
“Maybe we didn’t see their support as much on the ice, but to see the amount that came out behind us and received positive energy and support from them, it was amazing.”
According to the coach, the motivation of the players is key.
“The mind can be the biggest opponent, so the heads must be prepared one hundred percent for a determined performance that will bring us the desired advancement.”
Source: sportweb.pravda.sk
