Sweden had mixed results, but won the elimination game, while the opposite ran true for Czechia on Friday at the Olympics.
Finland 4, Sweden 1 (Group B)
Finland bounced back from a loss against Slovakia in a big way, throwing Group B into a bit of chaos. The Finns took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission, and that would be all they needed. Rasmus Dahlin got one back early in the second, but that was as close as they came.
Joel Armia answered back for FInland, and they got an empty net goal from Mikko Rantanen.
Juuse Saros was very good for the Finns, making 34 saves. Filip Gustavsson started his second straight game, making 20 saves on 23 shots.
Everything is to play for for the top three teams in the group with one game to play.
Slovakia 3, Italy 2 (Group B)
It would have been easy to predict a letdown for Slovakia after their big win against Finland, and they had that a bit against an Italian team that is much harder to beat than many expected entering the tournament.
After a scoreless first, Filip Hudacek opened the scoring for Slovakia and Matus Sukel doubled the lead. The Italians fought back. Matt Bradley scored to cut the lead to 2-1 entering the third period.
With 8:06 remaining in the third, Adam Ruzicka scored what turned out to be a huge goal to make it 3-1 because Dustin Gazley scored with 3:35 left in the game, but the hosts couldn’t get an equalizer.
Davide Fadani got the start for Italy but was replaced by Damian Clara in the third period. Fadani allowed two goals, Clara allowed one. Stanislav Skorvanek got the start for Slovakia and made 20 saves on 22 shots.
Slovakia can top the group with a point against Sweden. Juraj Slafkovský had an assist and seven shots on goal in this one.
Czechia 6, France 3 (Group A)
Martin Necas and Michal Kempny scored in the first period and it looked like the Czechs were going to coast against an overmatched French squad.
That didn’t happen. France answered back with three second period goals in 4:53 to turn the 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead. Louis Boudon scored twice, and Hugo Gallet got the third goal.
Before the period ended, Czechia re-took the lead on goals from David Pastrnak and Matej Stransky. Filip Chlapik and Roman Cervenka added goals in the third period.
Martin Neckar got the start for France and made 20 saves on 26 shots. Julian Junca came in and made 12 saves on 12 shots in relief. Dan Vladar got the start for the Czechs and made nine saves on 12 shots.
Martin Neckar got the start for France and made 20 saves on 26 shots. Julian Junca came in and made 12 saves on 12 shots in relief. Dan Vladar got the start for the Czechs and made nine saves on 12 shots.
Sweden 2, Czechia 0 (Women’s QF)
For the first time since 2014, Sweden’s women’s hockey team will play in the semifinal. It has been a long road back for a program that fell on hard times due to a lot of organizational issues after winning an historic silver medal at the 2006 Olympics, which just happened to be the last time they were held in Italy.
Hanna Olsson’s power play goal in the second period gave Sweden the lead, and it remained that way until an empty-net goal by Hilda Svensson.
Ebba Svensson Traff was outstanding for the Swedes in this one, with the 29-save shutout. Klara Peslarova started for Czechia.
Czechia, for their part, will be very disappointed with not playing for a medal after having hopes to get their first Olympic medal. They showed flashes of frustration in this one, which hindered their ability to come back.
United States 6 Italy 0 (Women’s QF)
The United States took care of business, and didn’t leave much room for a potential upset in this one. It was perhaps lower-scoring than some would have expected, but it was a solid win for the Americans.
Gwyneth Philips had a six-save shutout. The US had 51 shots of their own. Gabriella Durante made 45 saves in a strong performance.
Kendall Coyne Schofield had two goals, while Megan Keller, Laila Edwards, and Britta Curl had a goal and an assist. Hannah Bilka also scored, while Caroline Harvey had two assists.
Italy should be very proud of their performance in this tournament and it will be interesting to watch this program moving forward.
Canada 5 Switzerland 1 (Group A)
Justin recapped this game here.
Up Next
After six games on Friday, there are six more games on Saturday. The day starts with Sweden and Slovakia in a big Group B game alongside Germany and Latvia. The 10:40 Eastern block starts with Canada’s women playing their quarterfinal against Germany and Finland and Italy. The late games are the United States against Denmark and Switzerland playing Finland in the final women’s hockey quarterfinal.
