RIGA – Slovak ice hockey players have a chance to advance to the quarterfinals even before their last match in Group B at the World Cup in Riga. They kept it after a 1:0 triumph over Slovenia, but it was not on solid foundations and the Slovakian opponent was very close to a point. The Slovenians needed him in order to maintain their chance of survival in the A-category of the World Cup.
The fate of the duel was decided by the situation from the 21st minute, when Richard Pánik converted his escape. The game then flowed and the goal hung in the air on both sides. At the end of the duel, Sabolič was close to him, but he did not beat Škorvánek from a sharp angle.
Suffering until the last second
“We also suffered until the last second, because ten seconds before the end the Slovenians probably had the best chance of the match. But we didn’t convert them either, that was the biggest mistake. We have to convert them and it will be calmer.” defender František Gajdoš evaluated the match.
The Slovenians cherished the chance to save, after 40 minutes it was obvious that they would give all the rest of their strength to the last third. “We also said to ourselves in the dressing room that they have to score a goal and we just have to defend it. But we also wanted to score a goal to make it calmer. We knew it would be everything and luckily we managed to defend it.” added Gajdoš.
Skorvánek was casting a spell
Goalkeeper Škorvánek had 33 successful saves, he pulled off the important ones in the second period as well. “He caught everything, there is nothing to criticize him for. Hats off to him. I hope that goalkeepers will continue to do so” said the Slovak defender.
Craig Ramsay’s men have a day off before they face Norway. If they want to play in the elimination round, they have to win by three points and wait for the Latvians to hesitate with the Swiss.
“Once again, we have to be the ones who will determine the tempo of the game, we cannot adapt to the Norwegians. It would be best to score two or three goals right away, let it be calmer. We see that if we don’t give chances, we will suffer until the last seconds. Physically and mentally as well we’ll rest now. We’ll watch some videos, prepare for them and I believe we’ll succeed,” concluded Gajdoš.
- Author: © List
- Source: TASR
2023-05-22 03:50:14
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