The German U18 national team, coached by Alexander Dück, lost 2:4 to the Czech Republic in the opening match of the World Cup in Landshut. In front of around 3000 spectators, Roman Kechter and Luca Hauf scored the goals for the German team to make it 1:0 and 2:1 respectively. In the first ever game of the World Cup, Finland defeated Switzerland 6:2 in Kaufbeuren. The second game in the ice hockey capital of the Allgäu region was surprisingly won by Latvia 3:2 against Sweden. In the evening game in Landshut, the USA defeated their North American neighbor Canada by a clear 8:3.
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The opening day of the U18 Ice Hockey World Championships in Landshut, Lower Bavaria, turned into a real ice hockey festival. 3000 spectators at the German team's first home game ensured a real home advantage, which directly inspired the boys around captain Roman Kechter (Nuremberg). Kechter himself put his team in the lead in the first third and although the Czechs had a preponderance of chances, it would have been possible for the German team to go into the first break with a 1-0 lead if Slavicek hadn't scored a few seconds before the end of the first third would have. It was similar in the middle section. The hosts took the lead again, this time through Luca Hauf from Krefeld. This time, however, the Czechs not only managed to equalize, they used three power plays more or less in a row (Kulich twice, Cash once) to completely turn the game around 4-2. In the final section, the German team tried everything again, but they couldn't get more than one goal, which had to be disallowed due to a high stick from local hero Veit Oswald.
Voices about the game
National coach Alexander Dück: “What cost us the game in the end was that we didn’t play simply enough. Now everyone has seen what it takes to play at this level. Quick, easy decisions need to be made and we need to play together.
Goalscorer Luca Hauf: “It's a childhood dream for so many Fans to play, especially here in Germany. Almost the entire arena was behind us. That was a great feeling and gave us an extra boost.”
In the evening 2500 saw it Fans a wild, exciting, entertaining match between Canada and the USA. The US boys were ahead 1-2 after the first period. Canada quickly equalized at 0-2 at the beginning of the second period, but by the end of the period the Americans were already 2-2 ahead. Coach Adam Nightingale's team then brought this lead home safely and even built it up to 6-3.
Overall, day 1 in Landshut was as festive as it could be. The Fanatec Arena was the meeting place for the who's who in ice hockey. If DEBPresident Franz Reindl, the approximately 200 NHL scouts who had traveled there, whether former Landshut ice hockey greats such as Alois Schloder, Günter Oswald & Co., whether PENNY DEL, DEL2 or Oberliga coaches, managers or players. Everyone had come to see what level of performance the world's best U18 juniors are at and they were not disappointed by a well-playing and fighting German team. The game between Canada and the USA was an absolute treat and made us want to see a lot more junior ice hockey in the coming week until the final day on May 1, 2020 in Landhsut.
Detailed statistics: IIHF – Schedule and Results 2022 IIHF ICE HOCKEY U18 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP