In their second group game of the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, the German U18 national team, coached by Andreas Becherer, faced the Czech Republic's Young Talent selection. At Rogers Place in Edmonton, the Czech team got off to a better start, ruthlessly capitalizing on two power plays following penalties against the German team. The Czechs took an early 2-0 lead with goals in the 6th and 8th minutes. Five minutes before the end of the first period, they extended their lead to 3-0.
The Czech Republic continued to dominate in the second half. They increased their lead to 4-0 in the 21st minute, and just two minutes later added a fifth. After another goal to make it 6-0 in the 35th minute, the Czechs managed to pull one back. DEBThe first goal came in the 37th minute: Jonas Schwarz scored to make it 6-1. Just three minutes later, Max Calce reduced the deficit to 6-2, and the score remained 6-2 at the second intermission.
In the final period, the Czech Republic initially scored to make it 7-2 in the 45th minute. However, the German team responded once again: Lennox Ullmann scored to bring the score to 7-3 in the 47th minute. Midway through the final period, the Czech Republic sealed the 8-3 victory with a power-play goal.
Statistics for the game: https://www.hlinkagretzkycup.ca/en-ca/season/2026/stats/game-summary?gameid=5713
U18 national coach Andreas Becherer"We were unable to match the physical intensity of the Czechs for much of the game today. As a result, we were often a step too late and only managed to keep the game level in a few phases. While we had opportunities to score one or two more goals, overall the victory for the Czech Republic is deserved. Now we need to quickly put this game behind us, draw the right conclusions, and focus on the next challenge."
On Thursday, the team coached by U18 national coach Andreas Becherer will play their third and final group match against the USA. Kick-off is at 3 a.m. German time.