Captain of the Young Lions: direct text after the defeat

The Young Lions lost in overtime to the Czech Republic with a score of 1-2 in the U20 World Championships. The defeat was Finland’s first in the tournament.

The match was Finland’s first tough test in the group stage. The team struggled to get a grip on the game at the start, as Veeti Väisänen was sent to the showers just one minute into the game. This disrupted Finland’s performance.

– We didn’t achieve the optimal mental readiness. Of course, it’s human when a big penalty comes early and the opponent can capitalize on it, and for five minutes you’re basically just defending, dumping the puck, and throwing it 60 meters to the other end. It’s human that the readiness doesn’t quite hit at that moment and things don’t go as you would like, said the Young Lions’ captain Aron Kiviharju after the match to SuomiKiekko.

The Young Lions improved their performance as the match progressed, especially in the third period, but according to Kiviharju, the awakening ultimately came too late.

– Maybe I’m also a bit disappointed in myself and the team for not being able to return to the right track faster, which made the game as difficult as it was. But I’m proud of how we played that last 20 minutes, Kiviharju summarizes.

With a strong third period, Finland managed to equalize and extend the game into overtime. Emil Hemming scored the equalizer just 20 seconds before the end of regulation time.

– It shows determination and perseverance. We have to understand that whether we’re leading or trailing, the game lasts 60 minutes, and we followed that rule pretty well. A big and important extra point for us, and it could be very important for the future, Kiviharju states.

The Young Lions’ challenge becomes even tougher as they face Canada in the final group match. Kiviharju explains what the team needs to improve as they head into that game.

– Focus on the right things. We got a bit too caught up in poking the Czech Republic today, and knowing how much Canada does that compared to the Czech Republic, we really need to fix that first. Overall, we need to be more prepared and a bit tighter together, and that way the results will definitely come.