Sweden vs Switzerland. Which of the European teams starts the world championship with a victory?
The first round of the Youth Ice Hockey World Championship will end with a European confrontation between Sweden and Switzerland. The meeting of rivals in group B will be held on August 10 in Edmonton, on the ice of the local arena "Rogers Place".
The Swedish national team is traditionally ranked among the favorites at every major international hockey tournament, however, it is worth noting that Tre Krunur cannot boast consistently high results at the level of youth teams. The Swedes have only two gold medals in the almost half-century history of the tournament, and the last one was obtained in 2012, when Mika Zibanejad, now the star of the New York Rangers, scored the “golden” puck in overtime of the final match against the Russian team. Since then, the Swedes have been second three times and third once. At last year's World Championship, the Swedes were eliminated in the quarterfinals, where neighbors from Finland became a stumbling block for them.
Already before the start of the tournament, it became known that the three main stars of Swedish hockey of this age will miss the championship. Lucas Reymond and Alexander Holz, who have already played last season in the NHL, are starting preparations for the new season in their clubs, and forward William Eklund, who has fallen into the sphere of interests of San Jose, hopes to sign a full-fledged contract and decided not to risk his health. The only test match before the start of the World Championship was held by the Swedes against the Finnish team. At the end of regular time, the score was a draw - 1:1, but in overtime, luck was on the side of the Finns.
Switzerland
Swiss hockey has experienced a serious upsurge in recent years, which has already borne fruit in the form of getting into the winners of the world championships of the national team. True, these successes are less related to the youth squad, the maximum of which at the World Championships is bronze in the already distant 1998. A year ago, the Swiss also did not shine, taking last place in the group stage, losing all four matches with a goal difference of 5-20. To some extent, the Swiss were helped by the coronavirus, thanks to which the national team managed to maintain a residence permit in the elite division of youth hockey.
Now the Swiss national team is bringing to Canada a composition, mostly formed from the players of the national championship. There are also several representatives of overseas student leagues in the squad, including the colorful Attilio Biasca, potentially the main star of the Swiss in attack. On the eve of the start of the World Championship, the Swiss have already played six control matches, having won two victories in them (over the Czechs 6-3 and Slovaks 3-2) and losing four times (all the same to the Czechs 1-2, twice to the Finns 1-2 and 2- 4, as well as Team USA 1-6).
Our Expert Predictions & Analysis on Sweden vs Switzerland
SwedenThe Swedish national team is traditionally ranked among the favorites at every major international hockey tournament, however, it is worth noting that Tre Krunur cannot boast consistently high results at the level of youth teams. The Swedes have only two gold medals in the almost half-century history of the tournament, and the last one was obtained in 2012, when Mika Zibanejad, now the star of the New York Rangers, scored the “golden” puck in overtime of the final match against the Russian team. Since then, the Swedes have been second three times and third once. At last year's World Championship, the Swedes were eliminated in the quarterfinals, where neighbors from Finland became a stumbling block for them.
Already before the start of the tournament, it became known that the three main stars of Swedish hockey of this age will miss the championship. Lucas Reymond and Alexander Holz, who have already played last season in the NHL, are starting preparations for the new season in their clubs, and forward William Eklund, who has fallen into the sphere of interests of San Jose, hopes to sign a full-fledged contract and decided not to risk his health. The only test match before the start of the World Championship was held by the Swedes against the Finnish team. At the end of regular time, the score was a draw - 1:1, but in overtime, luck was on the side of the Finns.
Switzerland
Swiss hockey has experienced a serious upsurge in recent years, which has already borne fruit in the form of getting into the winners of the world championships of the national team. True, these successes are less related to the youth squad, the maximum of which at the World Championships is bronze in the already distant 1998. A year ago, the Swiss also did not shine, taking last place in the group stage, losing all four matches with a goal difference of 5-20. To some extent, the Swiss were helped by the coronavirus, thanks to which the national team managed to maintain a residence permit in the elite division of youth hockey.
Now the Swiss national team is bringing to Canada a composition, mostly formed from the players of the national championship. There are also several representatives of overseas student leagues in the squad, including the colorful Attilio Biasca, potentially the main star of the Swiss in attack. On the eve of the start of the World Championship, the Swiss have already played six control matches, having won two victories in them (over the Czechs 6-3 and Slovaks 3-2) and losing four times (all the same to the Czechs 1-2, twice to the Finns 1-2 and 2- 4, as well as Team USA 1-6).
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