World junior hockey quarterfinal to feature Canada-Czechia rematch
Alan Letang was on the edge of his seat as an assistant coach in the press box.
The final of last year’s world junior hockey championship saw Canada lead underdog Czechia 2-0 midway through the third period in Halifax before a pair of goals stunned the hosts.
The Canadians reset, kept their nerve and scored in overtime to secure a second straight gold medal.
Now in the top job, Letang knows just how close that team came to settling for silver.
“We remember the good side,” Canada’s head coach said Monday afternoon at Scandinavium arena. “They remember the disappointment.”
The stakes won’t be as high when the nations meet in Tuesday’s quarterfinal at the under-20 tournament, but the same principles that got Canada over the line some 12 months ago still apply.
“The small details, the small mistakes magnified,” said Letang, who has one returnee in forward Owen Beck. “Minuscule things that make a difference.
“I’m sure (the Czechs) remember.”
Canada finished second in Group A at this year’s event.
The hockey powerhouse — minus seven players in the pros or unavailable due to injury/illness — finished the preliminary round with Sunday’s unconvincing 6-3 victory over Germany that was tied 3-3 with 12 minutes left in regulation.
“Sticking with it,” Canada captain Fraser Minten said of the mindset through two frustrating periods. “We were gonna come out on top if we kept the momentum.”
“Grew up,” added defenceman Maveric Lamoureux. “We know the kind of team we are.”
Letang also knows what the Czechs, who have six players back from last year and pushed the top-seeded United States to a shootout in the round robin, will bring Tuesday.
“It feels hard,” he said. “But it hasn’t even started yet.”
Czechia head coach Patrik Augusta, who
Read more on globalnews.ca
