In front of a raucous home crowd, and exiting the opening frame tied 1-1, Canada rallied through adversity for a big win over Czechia. Canada scored six unanswered goals in the second and third to take a 7-1 win after struggling to solve Czechia early.
“I think we were tested a little bit early, just in the emotional and mental side of the game,” said head coach Troy Ryan. “Obviously, [there was] energy from the crowd and they brought a lot of physicality. I think the emotions probably got the best of us early, we coughed up a lot of pucks that we would not normally cough up, but after some chats in the room and on the bench, the athletes were able to sort some things out.”
Marie-Philip Poulin scored Canada’s first and second period goals moving into second all-time among Canadians in goals and points at the World Championships. She passed Hayley Wickenheiser in goals and Jayna Hefford in points.
Adela Sapovalivova scored Czechia’s lone goal in the first. She capitalized off a turnover and slid the puck under Canadian netminder Kristen Campbell.
Third Period A Different Story
Entering the third period up by only a goal, Canada put on a show of force. Sophie Jaques, Daryl Watts, and Jennifer Gardiner each scored in the third. Kristin O’Neill, a forward for the PWHL’s Montreal Victoire had a pair of third period goals.
“We knew what to expect coming in and playing in a loud atmosphere was hard, but we took that as energy for ourselves too,” said O’Neill. “I think once we gained momentum, it really helped us. My linemates and I did a really great job of forechecking, and we just focused on getting to the dirty areas and the rest kind of took care of itself.”
“I think we just had to settle down,” said defender Erin Ambrose, who was appearing in her 100th career game for Canada. “Obviously, it’s a loud crowd but I feel like we were too anxious to make plays and we just had to let the game come to us a little. I think once we settled down, everything kind of opened up for us.”
Canada finishes second in Group B, while Czechia will finish fourth. Finland finished third, while USA sits atop Group A.
