Finland began this championship for peace, losing to the national team of Belarus, which hilariously amused the hockey community. But the Finns made the right conclusions from this incident: the following rivals were easily destroyed, and the Czech team must win the victory so far remains one of the most beautiful in the tournament.
The Finnish team approached the game on the last day of the year, having a chance to get into the semifinals. To do this, you just had to win. The Finnish national team is somewhat reminiscent of the Russian national team. The main star in the lineup is the goalkeeper. Last year, Tuuku Raska defeated everyone with a confident game, and this is considered a real "joker" (if you can talk about goalkeepers). We have the most “adult” player (having the stability of the game for the team of masters) - Semyon Varlamov.
But Raska was embarrassed at this tournament, and his Russian counterpart looked great in all three matches. So cool that the scouts from the NHL in Sweden have already begun to scurry around. In Washington, namely, a club from this city drafted the goalkeeper, they are already sending telephone messages. Like, either pick it up soon, or let's change.
Field players of the Finnish national team are no worse and no better than the Russian national team. There are also hockey players playing at the basics of men's clubs. In general, in all respects these are rivals of the same level. But, as it turned out, only on paper.
The Russian team again struck with its swiftness and good aggression. After the first period, the score was 2: 0 in favor of the team of Eugene Popikhin, and the score on the rolls - 14: 4. Again there was only one team on the ice.
Semen Varlamov showed himself. His skill was tested twice in the starting segment of the match, and he was on top. But Rusk after the fourth puck in his goal was nervous and ran around the site, as if stung.
What can we say about the match if, after 30 minutes, the coach of the Finnish national team took a timeout to bring their guys to life? The score by this time was 0: 4, and there was not the slightest chance of rectifying the situation. There were times when the Finns managed to show equal hockey, but this required a lot of stress. Five minutes of a stable game turned into no less lasting failures.
The Russian team pleased with the team game. Once again, we can thank fate for the fact that this team does not have such hockey players as Malkin or Ovechkin (with enormous respect, of course). Everything here is one for another, and everyone can become a hero. This time the game was played by the second link, and Ilya Zubov scored two goals.
Cons team remain the same. It is not always possible to maintain concentration. In the first period, the defenders twice gave the puck in a foreign zone to the opponent. The Finns did not score, but now Canadians, Americans or Swedes await Russia. You can’t joke with them like that.
The second drawback is the realization of the moments. However, it’s ridiculous to talk about it with the score 5-0. But if the attackers all the time acted with due concentration, then the score could become double-digit. Or maybe the Russians just decided not to mock their peers?
Russia in the semifinals. And this is already wonderful. But now you can even think about gold medals. Even Canadians, the favorites of another group, do not show such hockey. They have more power, of course. But in game intelligence, the team of coach Evgeni Popikhin in this tournament is definitely not surpassed by anyone yet.
Alexey Shevchenko