Third gold for Czechia! U18 edged Slovakia

The scoring of the federal derby for gold was opened by Jakub Mikula, who was undefended in the slot and scored top-shelf. The tournament's star Marek Daníček took care of the second goal for the Czechs as he slipped between two defenders, making it 2-0. Shortly after, Ján Šatka got into a solo breakaway, which he finished to narrow the margin to one goal again. But Czechia doubled the lead once again as Štěpán Palán fired a long-ranger. The Slovaks answered almost immediately, it only took Mário Polák 69 seconds to tap in a rebound, making the end of the game very dramatic. However, that was all scoring-wise as brilliantly playing Koudela saved every Slovak shot, securing a 3-2 win and the third gold for Czechia at this year's World Juniors!

Svijanska Arena 1

2-3

(0:1, 1:1, 1:1)

Slovakia U18 - Czechia U18

Penalties

1:1

PPG

0:0

SHG

0:0

Shots on goal

20:24

Goals and assists

23. Šatka (Zajac, Zámborský), 33. Polák (Matušinský, Novajovský) – 10. Mikula (Daníček), 18. Daníček (Mikula), 31. Palán (Krbec)

Referees

Michael Vitello, Trevor Jarvis

Official game sheet

Slovakia U18

Sebestyén – Čenčarík, Rokos, Semančík, Botka (A), Božoň, Tisovčík, Brejčák, Feranec (A) – Matušinský, Zajac, Demčák, Franek, Zámborský, Šatka, Polák, Derlich, Sisík, Jankovič, Vaverčák (C), Knapík, Novajovský, Čech

Czechia U18

Koudela – Drechsler, Kamaryt (A), Palán, Malý, Musílek, Duchek, Zámečník, Vyhlídal – Pavlíček, Daníček (A), Pilař, Kantor, Kachlík, Mikšovský, Šlechta, Žežulka, Lehner (C), Rod, Jedelský, Krbec, Mikula

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COACHES´ REACTIONS

Martin Davídek (CZE): "It was a fast-paced match, yet I believe the duel was quite cautious from both sides. We managed to initiate quick counter-attacks, which suited us well. The goalkeeper also came through for us. There were a few contentious statements, but we couldn't let them unsettle us. It was a dignified game, and I think the spectators could have enjoyed it."

Ľubomír Líška (SVK): "It was something completely different from the game against Canada. The Czechs played well tactically. Our first period didn't go quite well, but then it started improving. We had plenty of chances, and it's a pity we couldn't capitalize on them."