Co-favourite Slovakia completes the group phase with an unchallenged 5:0 victory over Great Britain. The British remain without points in their last round robin game.
Slovakia, serial world champion between 2013 and 2019, has only partially convinced in the tournament with defeats against two rivals, Canada and Greece, and one win against underdog Haiti. The British team did not win a point in three games. For both teams, the last group game was an opportunity to show off their best hockey.
Slovakia started the game in a dominant position. However, the British team held their own in the early stages and also created several good scoring opportunities. The Eastern Europeans were not deterred by this. After 10 minutes, the British goalkeeper Khela had to reach behind him for the first time; Hryzak opened the scoring after a rebound. Shortly later, Satka doubled the lead and before the first period break, Hryzak again made it 3:0 after a great pass from Korbas.
Led by captain Greg Ferrington, who plays for La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland, the Brits put up a better fight in the middle period. But even in powerplay, they could not find a way back into the game. Slovak goalie Dubnicky kept a clean sheet. In turn, the Slovaks played out their routine and controlled the game. Olejnik made it 4:0 with a powerful long-range shot in overtime, and the Eastern Europeans did not let anything else get in their way, even though the Brits were determined to end the game on a positive note. It was rather Stefanka, who scored the fifth goal for Slovakia.
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