Men’s Classifications Round
KOR vs GBR
Great Britain made history today here in Almaty. It won its first game at the Winter Universiade. Team GB beat Korea in the classification round. It was Charnock who netted the puck in a powerplay five minutes into the first period. In the second period Team GB widened the gap with another goal. Hardly one minute in the last period however, Team Korea came back into the game with a goal via Kim. Trying to bring the game into overtime, Korea’s coach pulled the goalie with one minute remaining on the clock. However, Antonov got the puck and with the seconds ticking away he scored the empty netter. Final score: 1-3 (0-1; 0-1; 1-1). GBR will play USA for 9th and 10th place.
Men’s Quarterfinals
CZE vs SVK
When Czech Republic meets Slovakia on the ice, it’s always a big rivalry. As it was the case here in Almaty also. A full house crowd saw a genuine thriller of a game in which the Czechs had an early lead scoring two goals in hardly 30 seconds. In the second period, Slovakia worked its way back into the game with one goal. Hardly two minutes in the third, Slovakia scored another one equalizing the score. Half way the period Team Czech scored a third goal which was immediately retaliated by Slovakia forty seconds later bringing the match into overtime. With no sudden death in the OT, the game was decided with penalty shots in favour of Czech Republic. Final score: 4-3 (2-0; 0-1; 1-2, 0-0, 1-0).
KAZ vs SWE
The most anticipated game here in Almaty was without doubt the match between host Kazakhstan and Sweden. The latter proved to be the surprise of the tournament, showcasing a stellar performance against Team Kazakhstan. The host team managed a first goal after ten minutes in the first period. But then, the ‘Tre Kronor’ held off the blue and gold defending their goal with all they got. Backbone of Team Sweden on the ice was goalie Hansen, who blocked shot after shot. Kazakhstan, used to win with double digits against their opponents, started to lose its confidence. Only in the third period could Kazakhstan widen the gap efficiently using two powerplays. With two minutes left in the game Antsiferov put the icing on the cake by netting a forth puck.
“We put on a great performance tonight, did our best. We stayed close to them in two periods, but then took some stupid penalties in the last period and those two powerplays ended it”, goalie Hansen commented in the Mixed Zone. “I had a good feeling going into this game. After the first couple of saves I got really confident. Our team has been growing, we never played together before. Give us two more weeks and we’ll beat them. This score is a good result against Kazakhstan as they are really good.”
Women’s Classification Round
GBR vs JPN
Japan got ahead of Team GB early in the game netting four pucks in the first period. The British couldn’t close the gap but managed to score two goals. Final score: 2-9 (0-4; 0-2; 2-3).
C. Pierre, FISU Press Officer
