After topping favoured France in a wild 7-6 game, Ukraine put promotion to Division 1A for the first time since 2011 in the crosshairs, but group-leading Slovenia still stands in the way.
The Ukrainian national U20 hockey team skated to a wild 7-6 win over favoured France yesterday at the Division 1B U20 world championships in Estonia to keep its chances for promotion to Division 1A alive.
In one of those wild games of massive momentum swings found only at the junior level, Ukraine built a 5-1 lead after the first period before allowing France to storm back and take a 6-5 third period lead. The Ukrainians righted the ship when Sokil Kyiv forward Mykhailo Simchuk leveled the game with 2.5 minutes to go, setting the stage for Artem Hrebynyk’s memorable overtime marker.
“A thriller with a stunning outcome”, the Ukrainian Hockey Federation commented afterwards.
“It was a match that will be remembered for many years.“
It was Simchuk’s third goal and eighth point of the tournament, good for second-most of the tournament after three games. The Simchuk-Daniil Trakht-Danylo Korzhyletskyi line was dominant throughout the match, figuring in on four of the team’s seven goals, including the tying and winning markers.
Special teams have played a big role in the first three games. Ukraine’s power play has been clipping at a remarkable 46.15%, accounting for 6 of the team’s 15 goals. It’s been needed, too. No other team has been poorer on the penalty kill, as Ukraine has conceded five times in three games.
Ukraine is led by defenceman Artur Cholach, who was drafted in the XX round by the NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knights and plays in Canada for the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League.
His two assists brought him to six points through three games, more than any other defenceman in the tournament and good for fourth on the scoring table.
“I am proud to be able to represent my country on the international stage”, Cholach told the Kyiv Post. “In Canada, hockey is at its highest level and it’s faster and more technical. Unfortunately, these aren’t the best of times for our national team. We need to get to higher divisions. But it’s still a great learning experience when you play against other national teams.”
Ukraine can take a big step towards promotion to the higher group when it plays Slovenia tomorrow at 12.30. Relegated from the second-tier Division 1A after finishing last in that group in 2019, Slovenia will be looking for a quick return.
A win for Ukraine would leave the team near the top of the standings with the easiest schedule going forward. The last time Ukraine played in second tier at the U20 level was in 2011, before the IIHF divided the second tier between the higher 1A and lower 1B. The last time Ukraine played in the top tier was in 2004.
The game can be seen on Ukraine’s Sport 1 TV channel or the YouTube channels of the Ukrainian Hockey Federation and International Ice Hockey Federation.
Click here to watch a replay of the Ukraine – France game.
Ukraine won its first game, 7-2 over host Estonia, before dropping a tense 3-1 match against Japan.
