A recap of the action from January 9, 2025, Day 4 of the IIHF U18 Women's World Championship in Vantaa, Finland.
Czechia 6, Finland 0
I was excited for the idea of this matchup, but it didn't exactly live up the the tough game I expected. Czechia was fired up and ready for this game and played the complete 60 minutes that their coaches have been wanting and knowing they are capable of.
There were times during this tournament that it felt clear that Czechia was struggling to figure out what the offense looked like after their talented top line aged out, but today's game answered that fairly well, with six different scorers lighting the lamp.
The Finns got the first good look on net, but unfortunately for them it was maybe the best look they'd see for another 40 or so minutes. And an already punchy Czechia team responded and had a 1-0 lead before five minutes had passes as Adéla Fromová took advantage of Kerttu Kuja-Halkola being out of position due to a deflection to make it 1-0.
Czechia ended the first on a power play and another was called as time expired, meaning they started the second on a 5-on-3, which they capitalized on just 18 seconds in as Magdaléna Felcmanová put back a rebound to make it 2-0.
Linda Vocetková, who rang the crossbar earlier in the 1st, found the back of the net in the second, flipping the puck up and in to make it 3-0 at basically the midpoint of the game. Finland quickly called their timeout and picked up some momentum, but they could not turn it into points. There was another step in their attack and they were getting more than lackluster or throwaway shots on Daniela Nováková. In the beginning of the third, they had two breakaways back to back that seemed to signal they might be breaking through. The first was stopped by Nováková but the second drew a penalty.
The ensuing power play could not have gone worse for Finland as first Viktorie Jílková then Andrea Kantorová scored short-handed tallies for Czechia. Jílková took off, but had three Finns skating with her up the near boards. Unfortunately, none of them actually did any defending and she made an easy cut towards the net and beat Kuja-Halkola to make it 4-0. There may have been an argument for goalie interference on Kantorová's goal as there was a pile up when Kuja-Halkola made the save at the near post, but nothing was called and Kantorová picked up the puck from below the red line and put it in the wide open net to really shut the door on this game and put Czechia up 5-0. Dana Březinová tacked on a goal with five to play and the Czechs skated away with a decisive win, sending them to the semifinals for the second straight year.
What We Learned:
- Floundering Finland? – After a really nice tournament in 2024 where they finished fourth, losing the bronze medal game to Canada, the Finns never really looked dangerous this year. No one really stepped up on offense to be the big goal scorer like Emma Ekoluoma did last year and they just looked flat. Coach Mira Kuisma said it's a young team and she's not worried about their talent, but the problem is that talent was never really on display. They got beat on
- Patience – No matter how many of these do, I always wonder at how it can simultaneously be the fastest and slowest 10 days. Teams will have played four games by the end of today, but also we just started on Saturday. All of that is a long way to say that the idea of patience sounds kind of silly six days from the first puck drop, but with just two games left, Czechia felt like they'd shaken off a lot of the nerves and rust and whatever else was weighing them down through the opening round. They'd been patient in waiting for everything to come together as a team and they were also patient within the game. They trusted their preparation, weren't rushing things, found the shooting and passing lanes and knew the second- and third-chance opportunities would come. Czechia remembered who they are and who they can be today. They're the defending silver medalists and having lost to Canada in the opening rounds last year before beating them in the semi-final, they know what they're capable of.
Standout Performances:
- Finland F Tinja Tapani – Finland had to put in a lot of work today and very little of it was on offense. Tapani looked for chances to break out, but was also very active in trying to clear space in front of her goalie and getting in front of shots.
- Czechia F Magdaléna Felcmanová – She's only averaging about 15 minutes on ice per game but has made an impact in limited minutes. A big, strong player she really made space in the middle of the ice today, got into the dirty areas. She has made a case for increased playing time and I hope Czechia is able to get her more involved. She has room to grow, but this team had room for some players to step up into bigger roles and she has picked up the challenge. That's rarer then it should be, so color me impressed.
Quotable:
"I think everything went right. We avoided the big mistakes we'd had in some of the last games. We had really good energy from the beginning." - Czechia captain Linda Vocetková
"It's really nice that we had the confidence to go to the net and everybody can score. We know every single girl is really important." - Vocetková
There was some pressure on the first line. But I think last year's team was a bit different and now the team is every single line has the potential to score and it's more equal." - Vocetková
"Two years ago (in 2023) we lost in the quarterfinals and we learned from that. So then last year we won the semifinal. It's really good to have this experience. You just know what to expect. You know how it's going to feel." - Vocetková
"The second period last seven minutes and the third period was good. The emotions and their feelings were good, but of course it's frustrating when you don't score. They were very effective in the goal scoring while nothing went in for us. Maybe you have to earn your luck, but we certainly didn't have any.” - Finland coach Mira Kuisma
"We have to be better with puck handling and skating and everything, but we have a young team here. I'm not worried. I know they have talent, but they are young." - Kuisma
"I think we played a great game even though it ended 6-0. I think we should have been able to score from the chances we got. We had a lot of great opportunities to score." - Finland captain Abigail Byskata
"I'm really proud of our team. We weren't able to get to the next stage, but we have a real nice team. We have such a great team spirit." - Byskata
"It has been such an honor. At all the games there's been a huge group and a lot of people watching us. It's been a really cool experience. I hope the little girls who were here can get inspiration and will want to play at the World Championship some day." - Byskata
"We have to play our game - how we know how to play. Be aggressive. We were good with managing the pucks and believe in our style of play. I hope this helps us in the semifinals. The girls have started to be very full of confidence." - Czechia coach Dušan Andrašovský
"It's important because they know that if they believe in themselves, if they sacrifice their bodies, that we can win against opponents like the United States or Canada. We won't win 10 times, but one time is all it takes. Time will tell." - Andrašovský
"They played with patience today and also with heart. It was very nice to see them believe in our style of play and support each other." - Andrašovský
"I'm really happy because in Finland I don't play on the best team and many of the Finland players play on better teams. I'm really happy that at the international level I get to beat them," Czechia F Magdaléna Felcmanová, who plays professionally in Finland and is very familiar with the players on Team Finland.
"I think that we finally worked together as a team and most of the time we were doing what we wanted and we were playing our own game." - Felcmanová
Canada 17, Japan 0
This game was out of hand before 10 minutes had passed and it only got worse from there, so forgive the somewhat brief recap.
Chloe Primerano matched an U18 tournament record with four points in the first period and six points overall. Stryker Zablocki and Maxine Cimoroni each had a hat trick. Calleigh Tiller joined those three with a total of five points each. Kate Manness was the only player on the roster not to tally a point in the game, but her assist in the Switzerland game means every skater on the roster has tallied at least one point
What We Learned:
- Canada plan – It doesn't really matter which player we talk to, the answers are almost identical. The team has been trained on and off the ice on what the game plan and strategy is and they know exactly what they're supposed to say. It doesn't make for very interesting post game interview and that's at least some of the point, but it is indicative of the communication and messaging that everyone is on board and saying all the right things. That cohesion has translated to the ice, which means it's successful, even if it's a little unnerving.
- A ways to go – If Japan was disappointed and maybe even a little shell-shocked by letting two close games where they had the lead at one point slip through their fingers, I'm not sure how they'll really process this game. It might be worth one watch of the game tape for learning purposes, but it may be best for Japan to memory hole this and instead focus on the games where one or two small differences could have brough a different outcome. The amount of work that is inherent in understanding the gap this quarterfinal highlighted is honestly massive.
Standout Performances:
- Japan G Haruka Kuromaru and Rio Suzuki – I can't imagine what it took to make it through this game under constant bombardment. Neither is to blame for the score and I thought throughout the tournament they showed poise, but also commitment. They never gave up and they have my utmost respect.
- Canada F Stryker Zablocki – She feels like the breakout star of the Canada team this year for me. She was productive in a more limited role in 2024 with two goals and five assists, but there were much bigger performances that took the spotlight. Now the Northeastern commit is leading all scorers with six goals and is tied for second among all scorers. She's consistently around the net, chasing down pucks and just recognizable every time she's on the ice.
Quotable:
“Our good habits and attention to details have made us successful and the players did a pretty good job with that today, and they didn't try to do something just because they could." - Canada coach Vicky Sunohara
“We’ve been able to roll four lines and six defenders all season long, and today wasn’t really that much different, but, for sure, we wanted to give everyone ice time." - Sunohara
“Sydney [Sawyer] skated it in, I was behind her, she dropped it to me and I passed it to Ava Wood in front, and I saw the puck loose behind the net, and got around quickly. I saw the opportunity and took it." - Canada F Sofia Ismael on her wrap-around goal
“We stuck to our habits the whole time. There are no selfish players on our team."
- Ismael
"It builds my confidence. Playing with them has helped me all tournament. My linemates and I communicated a lot." - Ismael, on playing more with more experience players
(Photo: Nicole Haase)
