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1st July 2023 - Štěpán Navrátil

USA U23 snuck into play-offs! Five-point game by Albright

The USA couldn't have asked for a better start to the game. Just 41 seconds in, Joe Melillo unleashed a howitzer from the top of the left circle. Brad Bujdos neatly tucked the puck into the top corner from a tight angle two minutes before the first intermission, although Switzerland cut the gap in half thanks to Raffaele Cioffo. The Americans had a great start to the second period as well, with Jordan Albright scoring on a breakaway. The back-and-forth battle continued as Max Müller netted a power-play goal. USA U23 struck again, and thanks to Connor Callahan and Jordan Albright's second tally, they were up by three. The Swiss couldn't come back anymore, resulting in a 6-2 US victory that sent the Americans into the semifinals.

Svijanska Arena 1

2-6
(1:2, 1:2, 0:2)

Switzerland U23 - USA U23

Penalties
4:5
PPG
2:2
SHG
0:0
Shots on goal
28:24

Goals and assists

15. Cioffo (Wehrli), 22. Müller (Mballa, Iten) – 1. Melillo (Tolman, Garneau), 14. Bujdos (Albright, Anesin), 17. Albright (Snyder), 22. Callahan (Albright), 37. Albright (Anesin), 42. Anesin (Albright)

Referees

Michal Škrobák, Peter Hriško

Official game sheet

Switzerland U23

Schnyder – Iten (C), Penzenstadler, Eberle, Wegmüller, Büschi, Fund, Cremer, Räss – Rohdewald, Müller, Wehrli (A) – Kapanek, Cioffo (A), Enzler – Fairclough, Tschamper, Lüthi – Mballa, Bütikofer, Vaucher

USA U23

Snyder – Bujdos, Melillo (C), Albert, Andes, Malloy, Steinberg, Dickhut, Ferris – Crousy (A), Tolman, Garneau (A) – Miller, Geatens, Drew – Anesin, Albright, Callahan – Holman, Chernetskiy, Dorsey

COACHES´ REACTIONS

Tibor Kapanek (SUI): „It's a bit disappointing; we didn't envision the game unfoding this way. We lacked more energy on our part. Our plans were disrupted by the early goal in the opening minute. That led to even more nervousness, trying not to make any mistakes. We gave away the ball and allowed the opponent to play more, and they definitely deserved the victory. They were better today.“

Mike Albright (Assistant Coach, USA): „We needed a big rebound game. All week long we’ve been playing from behind. We played the Czechs, then the Slovaks and Canadians. I told my team let’s see what we can do when we start with lead and build of it instead of trying to come out of a hole every time. They responded and got the lead from the first shot of the game. We started to roll chances, all four lines had its own possibilities. We just started putting the ball to the net. It was a good result.“