|
S72 IIHF Medal Recap & Awards
|
ValpixIIHF Federation Head IIHF GM
Hey everyone, it's your friendly neighborhood HO Val Pix here, coming to you from the grounds of the University of Limerick. We're here to recap the medal rounds of this year's IIHF tournament and hand out some much-deserved awards!
Now, let's start with the medal round recap, shall we? QUARTERFINALS  Ireland 0-3 Germany  Ireland entered this tournament as reigning champs, but in a tough group a 8-4 group stage was only good enough for third. That set them up with a matchup against Germany, a clash of the two most recent champions. Julian Eaglesong's suckerpunch of an early goal (less than 90 seconds in) took the rabid crowd out of the game. The Irish attack could generate looks, but were unable to solve a splendid 33 save effort from Olof Karsikko. Insurance goals from Evan Winter and Chris McZehrl Jr. helped them pull away. IIHF rookie Beau Kavanagh was terrific, stopping 38 shots, but got no goal support as the hosts went home empty-handed.  Sweden 3-2 USA  After missing the quarters in S71, Tre Kronor wanted immediate redemption and got it. In a hyper competitive Group B, where only two points separated first and fifth, they got their nose to the top of the group. That parity continued in this 1v4 matchup. Sweden struck first, but the States got two Benson Fiorentini goals (one in the second and one early in the third) to take the lead. Four minutes later, Graj Virrok got the Swedes back to even. And then came one of the most dramatic moments of the tournament. In the dying seconds, Tre Kronor threw the kitchen sink at Justin Time. In a mad scramble that ensured, Melvin Majestik-Moose scored the winner with just one second to play. American hearts shattered. Swedish fans jumped for joy. An unbelievably even game that literally came down to the last breath.  France 4-1 Japan  The first excursion into the medal rounds for Les Bleus since being founded - and a first major upset, as a team that squeaked into the knockouts on tiebreaker took down the best team in the group stage (Japan went 10-2). Grzegorz Brzęczyszczykiewicz allowed just one single goal on 31 shots, a power play goal late in the second by Videl Valor. But by then, the French had already potted four goals and were in cruise control, fuelled by two goals from Duncan Mackenzie, and two points each from Georg N'Zola and Aleksi Kettu. It wasn't dramatic, but so was UMBC over Virginia. That doesn't make the occasion any less historic in IIHF terms. As they say...you always remember your first.  Norway 5-3 Finland  Normally, an early power play gives you the chance to get on the front foot and establish your game style. Unfortunately for Finland, they ended up going down on it, through Tom Pedersen. A goal early in the second by ageless wonder Andreas Kvalheim doubled the Norwegians' lead. The Finns, however, fought back, as goals 67 seconds apart from David-Arturri Donskoi and Bnana NWaffles pulled them back to even. But they were unable to regain the lead, and three consecutive goals from Gonzo Gobbledygook, Aksel Fiske, and Grogu Mandosson helped the Norwegians pull away despite a late consolation goal from Nibbles the Squirrel. SEMIFINALS France 2-4 Germany Unfortunately for the French, the hype of their first medal round win would not carry them to a first final appearance. That wasn't due to them - they actually scored first and peppered the German net looking for insurance - but rather the dominance of Karsikko, who stopped 49 in an amazing performance. Jonas Kahnwald scored the go-ahead goal with just over five minutes to go in regulation, and the team also got excellent performances out of Konstantin Selich (four points) and Evan Winter (three points). Sweden 0-5 Norway The dramatics of their win over the US left Sweden's gas tank a bit towards the E. Or maybe that's a Saab story, I don't know. But Norway outshot them 44-32, took a 3-0 first period lead, and never looked back. Gonzo Gobbledygook posted three assists, all primary, and Ally Mathieson stopped all 32 shots she saw. BRONZE MEDAL GAME France 2-7 Sweden After a pretty even first period and a half of the game, Tre Kronor flipped the switch and just went absolutely nuts, potting five unanswered and chasing Brzęczyszczykiewicz in the process. They dominated the shot count 50-31, and got three points from Lias Ekholm-Gunnarsson and two goals from Dave Heinrich as they secured a bronze medal, their fourth medal in five seasons. GOLD MEDAL GAME Norway 1-4 Germany No matter what round, no matter who the opponent, in this medal round it all came down to Olof Karsikko. Again. Norway struck first in the first, through Salzberger Lillehammersson. But that was as good as it got for the Nordic side. Germany scored two goals less than 30 seconds apart late in the first, Karsikko would stop 39 shots, and the Germans would put their Mercedes in cruise control, tacking on a pair of insurance goals. It's a second gold in three years for Germany, and one that was well deserved. Now, let's get to directorate awards...all stats group stage only. Best Goaltender Finalists:  Walter Sobchak (3-1-0, 1.56 GAA, .947 SV%, 7.59 GSAA, 142 SV) Olof Karsikko (9-1-2, 3.46 GAA, .899 SV%, 1.14 GSAA, 373 SV) BASE PACK (8-1-0, 2.68 GAA, .930 SV%, 11.10 GSAA, 305 SV)And the winner, receiving four of the six first place votes from the committee is.... BASE PACK @slothfacekilla!!BASE PACK provided a very strong BASE for the Japanese, leading the tournament in GSAA and shutouts while placing fourth in both SV% and GAA. He was a key part of Japan's sparkling group stage and more than earned this award! Congrats to BASE PACK! Now to the blueline.... Best Defender Finalists Brendan Laroux (6-8-14, Even, 4 PIM, 18:56 TOI, 51.1 CF%) Philippe-Eko Eel (5-6-11, +12, 20 PIM, 23:52 TOI, 53.7 CF%) Wide Peepo Happy 3 Koivu (6-8-14, +17, 4 PIM, 23:28 TOI, 52.8 CF%)And your winner, in a tight vote that saw 3 different players get first place votes, is.... Wide Peepo Happy 3 Koivu @Rotti!!Two for two for...this would work better if their team nickname was like soccer where it's Samurai Blue. Oh well. But enough about my Dr. Suess audition. Koivu tied Laroux for the tournament lead in goals and points among blueliners, and was also tied with teammate Ryosuke Sato for tops in plus-minus! Congrats to Koivu! And now, for the last award tonight... Best Forward Finalists Mads McBride (7-18-25, +7, 10 PIM) Konstantin Selich (10-13-23, +12, 4 PIM) Red Kirkby (10-13-23, +13, 4 PIM)This one was near unanimous and to be honest it's hard to argue with history... your winner, for the second straight year is.... Mads McBride @NJBadApple!!McBride's 25 point group stage was a record, at least in the time that the index lets me go back. He had four more assists than anyone else and chipped in seven goals as well! A well deserved honor, and some good news for this year's hosts. That'll be all from Limerick. Thanks once again to the Irish federation on hosting an excellent tournament, congratulations once again to Germany on their triumph and to Norway and Sweden on their medals. Until next season...Val Pix, signing off! [ready for grading]
slothfacekillaGraphic Graders Killing you slowly |
|
« Next Oldest | Next Newest »
|
![[Image: valpix.gif]](https://sig.grumpybumpers.com/host/valpix.gif)
![[Image: 20XRTsR.png]](https://i.imgur.com/20XRTsR.png)
![[Image: kcP9WEd.png]](https://i.imgur.com/kcP9WEd.png)
![[Image: VGl3CB4.png]](https://i.imgur.com/VGl3CB4.png)
![[Image: hw6Eojc.png]](https://i.imgur.com/hw6Eojc.png)
![[Image: lqfXIpe.jpeg]](https://i.imgur.com/lqfXIpe.jpeg)
| Users browsing this thread: |
| 1 Guest(s) |
