WJC: Slovakia vs Finland, Dec. 27th, 2014

In their second round robin game of the tournament, the returning champion Finns (0-0-1-0) wanted to build on the momentum they generated a night earlier in a 3-2 shootout loss to the powerhouse Americans; the underdog Slovaks (0-0-0-1), meanwhile, sought redemption in their bout with the Finns, after being absolutely trounced in a 8-0 shellacking by the host Canadians a day before.

Early on it was a deja vu affair for Finland. Mikko Rantanen (2015 draft-eligible) opened the scoring for the second game in a row. And again, for the second game in a row, Finland gave up an early one-goal lead to their opponent, when an Peter Cehlarik (Boston, 3^rd Round, 2013) deflection evened things up at the midway point of the first period. As is typical of Finnish international hockey, the game turned into a veritable chess match in the neutral zone from there.

The NHL prospects suiting up for Slovakia were solid, namely Martin Reway (Montreal, 4^th Round, 2013) and the aforementioned Cehlarik. In the second period, it was more of the same from those two—as a series of deflection-based opportunities led to an eventual goal from the point, coming off of the stick of Matus Halenda (2013).

Things were a bit different for NHL prospects wearing the Suomi colours. Kasperi Kapanen, for instance—a Pittsburgh Penguins first round selection from 2014. His overall game left much to be desired.

Christian Jaros (2014) and Erik Cernak (2015 draft-eligible)—did a good job of clogging the neutral zone and limiting opportunities.

In the third period, the Finns re-surged, with Julius Honka (Dallas, 1^st Round, 2014) and Jesse Puljujarvi (2016 draft-eligible) looking particularly dangerous in the offensive zone, despite scoring no points. With Puljujarvi hitting the post multiple times, Slovakians blocking shots like maniacs, and excellent goaltending from Godla, Slovakia was able to maintain a one-goal lead from the first period. With a final score of 2-1 for the Slovaks, a late elbow to the back of the head at the buzzer from Erik Cernak on Mikko Rantanen marred an otherwise stellar upset victory.

Noteworthy:

Denis Godla – “We prepared ourselves for today’s game,” said Godla in reflection of the victory. “It was a new beginning.” Indeed, coming out of a crushing defeat to Canada a day earlier and having been pulled from his crease early, Godla’s 97-plus save-pecentage performance gave Slovakia new hope heading into its next two round robin contests as he was stellar for them tonight.

Christian Jaros – He went undrafted through seven rounds last summer. He stands very tall and is a dependable defender in all situations. He keeps an active stick and is beginning to show some more punch in the offensive end, as well.