Day two of the IIHF Men’s World Championship in Riga, Latvia was no short of excitement. The second day of the tournament saw six games on the schedule.
In group A action, Denmark was starting off their tournament action with a game against Sweden. Denmark ended up taking the game 4-3 with Nicklas Jensen putting up a 4-point game, 3 goals and an assist for the Danes.
Group B’s day two action started off with Germany taking on Norway. Germany finished the game with a commanding 5-1 victory to give them two early wins in the tournament giving them the early lead in group b standings.
Russia and Great Britain kicked off the second game of day two with a commanding win by the Russians. Russia dominated the Great Britain squad out scoring them, outshooting them (42-11), and limited the Brits to only 10 shots all game.
The main game of the day that North Americans were focused on saw the United States playing in their first tournament game against Finland. As expected, the game was a close, high paced match between the two powerhouse hockey countries.
Despite a high number of shots being thrown both goaltenders way, the scoreboard did not reflect the pure amount of shots being thrown at each team’s goalie. The Americans were able to throw 30 shots at Jussi Olkinuora but were unable to slip one past the Finnish goalie. Jason Robertson, Dallas Stars’ winger, scored late in the second period to make the game 2-1 after Finland had scored earlier in the second frame. Atte Ohtamaa and Liro Pakarinen scored Finland’s 2 goals.
Group A’s last game of the night saw Switzerland taking on the Czech Republic. The Swiss ended up getting the better of the Czechs and securing a 5-2 victory for their first game of the tournament.
The host’s, Latvia, took on Kazakhstan in the final game of the night. A high paced, equally matched game saw Kazakhstan winning their first game of the tournament over the host’s 3-2 in a shootout.
Day 3 of the 2021 IIHF Men’s World Championships will see 6 games on the lineup again. Slovakia will take on Great Britain, Belarus will take on Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland will all face off in group A action. Group B will see Italy taking on Norway, Kazakhstan taking on the undefeated Fins, and Canada looking for their first victory of the tournament against the United States who will also be looking for their first win.
Be sure to come back to Unbenched following each day of the IIHF Men’s World Championship to read the Riga Recaps and get all the details about the action in Latvia.
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