A recap of the action from January 15, 2025, day five of the IIHF U18 Women's World Championship in Sydney and Membertou, Nova Scotia.
USA 9, Hungary 0
After their best game of the tournament and a narrow loss to Switzerland, Hungary earned the privilege of facing an American team who has given up a single goal all tournament and is averaging 12 goals scored per game.
Hungary coach Zoltan Fodor chose to go with Csenge Csordás in net after Zoé Takács had been in the net for most of the opening round. It's difficult to shine in a situation like this, but Csordás settled in particularly well by the third period, stopping all 14 USA shots in the frame. Unfortunately for Hungary, the Americans lit the lamp nine times through the opening two periods and easily skated away with the win.
Jane Daley started the scoring with some good stick work cutting into the center and popping the water bottle to make it 1-0 and the US was off. Jillian McLaughlin and Emily Pohl pushed the score to 3-0 and then Alaina Gnetz made history. She scored the fastest two goals in WW18 history when she pushed the lead to 5-0 by scoring two goals 11 seconds apart, besting the previous record by a second, which was set in 2016 by Russia's Fanuza Kadirova. Pohl scored again before the intermission to send the US to the locker room up 6-0.
In the second, Lindsay Stepnowski and Talla Hansen added goals and Daley took off for another breakaway beauty, giving her two goals in the game. Those tallies put her in a tie for the tournament record for goals in a single tournament with 11. USA's Haley Skarupa set the record in 2012. Daley also has four assists in this touranament and two more games to play, meaning we'll also be watching to see if she will surpass the single-tournament record of 19 points that was set by Amanda Kessel in 2009. Speaking of Kessel in that tournament, both Kylie Amelkovich (10) and Chyna Taylor (9) are chasing Kessel's record of 13 assists in a single tournament.
Pohl was named the USA's best player of the game while Helga Tamás was givien the honor for Hungary. The three best players for Hungary as chosen by the team were Takács, Luca Faragó and Petra Petra Polónyi.
Next up: Semifinal - USA will face the Sweden in the semifinals. The two teams met in last year's semifinals with the US taking a 2-1 win. Hungary will play Finland in the Relegation game
What We Learned:
- Balanced attack – Every skater on the US roster plus goalie Bianca Birrittieri have at least a point in this tournament.
- Chasing Perfection – The IIHF recognizes something they call a "perfect gold" meaning winning every game while never trailing and never being tied beyond 0-0 at any point in the tournament. That has never happened at the U18 Women's World Championship. The Amercans have given up just one goal all tournament, while scoring 45.
- Playing for pride – It feels like Hungary has adapted really well to this level considering they haven't played at the top tier in so long. It's one thing to be a team that regular bounces between the two - at least some of the players and the staff know what to expect. But Hungary is here a bit out of nowhere and you can actually see the ways they've improved from game to game. I know this is a tough task for them, but I also feel like they have taken a lot from their final group game and from the third period of this one. I don't think the relegation game outcome is a foregone conclusion.
Standout Performances:
- USA F Jane Daley – She had ten shots and is just an obvious presence every time she's on the ice. It's absolutely bonkers to see the difference in her from last tournament to this one and to think that she's only 16. Her speed is incredible, but she's also got great instincts, an accurate shot and a sense for when to dish the puck. She's so much fun to watch.
- Hungary F Krisztina Weiler – She's the other player on this roster already committed to an NCAA team - she'll be heading to Lindenwood. She hadn't much stood out to me in previous games, but it felt like she found some comfort and confidence as the tournament went on and she was a notable offensive presence as well as getting back on defense and blocking shots.
Quotable:
"I don't think of myself as a pure scorer. My teammates have done a really good job of getting pucks on my stick. I had some good chances today but overall we're getting pucks to the net. Some go in and some don't. Overall, I don't think that's important here. Playing better as a team is important, and we have to be sure to be at the top of our game next time." - USA F Jane Daley
"I would say we're not worried. We trust ourselves and we trust each other. We all have each other's backs. I think that's super important." - Daley
"We just have to be diligent. Penalities are going to happen." - Daley
"I think we just needed to get pucks deep and keep with the tempo and we did that, so we're doing well." - USA F Alaina Gnetz
"We played better as the game went on and I think we started to play well in our end, which is really good. We were encouraging them to be more physical, and to do better in the one-on-one situations and protect our goalie. I think we did a great job of that." - Hungary coach Zoltan Fodor
"The game pace is much higher, and we have to focus on every shift. I think we've done our best in all of these details, but it's all about focus." - Fodor
"We grew as a team together. I think it's very important that every single shift is used to develop and just be better every single time. I'm really happy with what we achieved during the four games." - Fodor
"We cleaned our defensive-zone coverage after the first period. In the second and third it was very good and we did a good job in front of our house." - Fodor
Canada 12, Finland 0
Finland has had a disaster of a tournament and it didn't get any better on Wednesday. They simply have not been able to muster anything offensively and have been static and slow defensively. On defense in particular they've felt really reactive, leaving them steps behind. That has left them playing in the relegation game for the first time ever - prior to this year they'd never finished lower than sixth.
It's difficult to nitpick a 12-0 win, but arguably Canada started a little slow again and that has to be slightly concerning as we head into the semfinals and finals. That being said, when they struggled early against Sweden and they got the first goal, it immediately snapped Canada into shape and they recovered easily enough.
In the end, Canada still scored five first-period goals. Four of them came in less than five minutes, forcing Finland coach Mira Kuisma to make a goalie change just ten minutes into the game.
In the second, Finland looked to find some of what Kuisma has been calling "courage," returning to their game and seeming to remember what they're capable of. They were proactive and pushing back, not giving Canada space. A breakway shot just high might have changed the course of things had it found twine, but instead Canada scored ten minutes into the frame and any determination that had been fueling Finland to start the period seemed to leech away again.
Canada's win was headlined by a four-goal night from Adrianna Milani. Maddie McCullough and Rachel Piggott each added two goals of their own. Rosalie Tremblay, Hayley McDonald, Sofia Ismael and Laurie Aubin each also scored a goal in the game.
It was Rowan Houweling that earned the shutout in this game, but Canada coach Vicky Sunohara would not commit to whether she or Lea-Rose Charrois, who also had two starts so far, would get the net in the semifinal.
What We Learned:
- March babies – Jane Daley and Adrianna Milani were born two days apart in March 2009 and they've been the two most outstanding players at this tournament. At just 16, Milani has accelerated her schooling so that she can enroll at Minnesota a year early (Chloe Primerano did the exact same thing two years ago).
- Continuity – One thing that I think has been important for both the US and Canada in this tournament is that they have had a fairly consistent roster for most of the year, including sticking with their line combinations. That feels really important for the younger players in a short tournament and it's something they've brought up a bunch in interviews. The way Milani and her line are anticipating and reading each other has helped this team excel even when things aren't going exactly as they'd like .
Standout Performances:
- Canada F Adrianna Milani – Excuse me while I go on and on. But she is slick and smooth. Her skating is super fluid and she just seems to be in the right place at all times. It feels like she's scored in a bunch of different ways and is really connected with her linemates.
- Finland F Netta Siitonen – In a tournament where her team hasn't mustered much, she's been a visible driver of offensive attempts and working to generate something.
Quotable:
"I thought we had a decent start. We said that we had to have better starts. We haven't been starting the last few games well. We wanted to get pucks in deep. We want to play the way we feel that we need to play to be successful in this tournament. Sometimes teams will let us get away with some things that other teams won't." - Canada coach Vicky Sunohara
"There were some positives but we still have to make sure that we're consistent with them." - Sunohara
"Czechia has always been a physical team and they've always given us a tough time. We are not looking ahead. We're going to have to stick to our habits. Put pucks behind them and use our speed. We have talented players but you need to be able to battle and compete to be successful. We will continue to focus on us ... and we think the results will take care of themselves. " - Sunohara
"The first period wasn't what we were hoping for to start, but as the game continued we started to pick it up." - Canada F Sofia Ismael
"I think it will be a tough game. They're hard on pucks and really aggressive. They're physical so we'll need to pick up our physical game." - Ismael
"I have some great linemates. Laurie's pass of the wall was elite." - Canada F Adrianna Milani
"Just expeirences like this. Going to the summer series as well and playing with this group has really allowed me to grow as a player - on the ice, off the ice and my leadership skills." - Milani
"We tried. The feeling is so disappointing at the moment. We tried to play, that's why the result is so huge. Our game is going better and better every game. The team spirit is incredible. But in the first games I don't know what happened on the ice because we could not score and our defending was bad, also. I'm feeling so disappointed. I have so little time to turn my eyes on the Saturday relegation game." - Finland coach Mira Kuisma
"One reason we fought for the full sixty minutes is because we kept the spirit on th ebench really positive. We have Finnish 'sisu,' guts - it doesn't translate well to English. We tried. We didn't give up at any point." - Kuisma
"The second period first ten minutes, we showed good courage. Then Canada made one score and our team got discouraged.
"I really believe they'll rally for the relegation game. There's pride. We have to somehow dig the confidence for goal scoring." - Kuisma
"I don't want to even think about that. We belong here and we're going to stay here." - Kuisma, when I asked what impact losing the relegation game would have on her program
"It sucks but we just have to go on.
(Photo: Nicole Haase)
