Coach Roger Bader’s pick went off the ice with a 1:4 (0:0,1:2,0:2) against the United States on Wednesday in Tampere. Captain Thomas Raffel scored his third World Cup goal on the power play (38) to make it 1-1. After 57 seconds, the Americans submitted again.
Rocco Grimaldi (28 minutes), Carter Mazur (39 minutes), Lynn Hutson (44 minutes) and Nick Berbix (58 minutes) fired into the empty net as the USA recorded their fourth World Cup success. If the Austrians, who are still holding a point, cannot surprise in the upcoming matches against Germany on Friday (7.20pm) and defending champions Finland on Saturday (3.20pm), the head-to-head duel with Hungary on Monday will be about a ticket to the 2024 World Cup in the Czech Republic. .
Austria had fond memories of the United States. Last year, a sensational point was scored against the favorites at the World Cup. Bader changed his lines again. Peter Schneider has moved into a line with Marco Rossi and Dominic Zwerger. Henrik Neubauer is back on the ice with Lukas Haudum and Manuel Ganahl. Oliver Ackermann’s position has been paused, and defender David Reinbacher is still missing with a knee injury. Veteran Bernhard Starkbaum started again in goal.
A day after Rossi’s harsh words (“It’s not acceptable”), the Austrians initially presented themselves as having improved. Defensive action was more consistent, and the Americans had no room for development. The outnumbered game also succeeded. Rossi was sent into the penalty area twice in the first half and the USA couldn’t capitalize. Only taking chances can improve it.
Zwerger after a solo pass (5) and after perfect passes from Schneider (16) and Thomas Rafel (12) failed to get their score to US goalkeeper Cal Petersen. In the early stages of the second half, Austria had good chances with Zwerger – Petersen was present with his fist – and Janal fired it just wide. Then Starkbaum increasingly took center stage. The 37-year-old cannot be defeated in a one-on-one counterattack by Mazur.
The United States now has significantly increased and been rewarded. Crossing NHL veteran Nick Bonino (now the Pittsburgh Penguins) in front of the goal, Grimaldi finished. Austria was hoping for stats that showed at least one goal had been scored against the United States in every World Cup match since 1947. This should also happen in Finland. The Austrians were able to build up their first power play well, and Ravel pulled off a great combination through Dominik Heinrich, Rossi and Sneijder into an empty goal. Joy doesn’t have to last a minute. Austria could not reach the American attack, Mazur turned quite freely in front of Starkbaum.
The Austrians’ third goal was a nuisance. In transition in the United States, Hutson moved towards the goal. The defender, one of eight collegiate players on the All-American team, outwitted the red-white-red defense and knocked Starkbaum out with his last might through the goalie’s legs. Rafel & Co. didn’t give up, but there was no reward. Zwerger missed a penalty kick (52) after Bernd Wolf left the ice alone in front of Petersen after a fatal American error. The defender had to leave the ice with a knee injury. Goalie Petersen was again the winner in a private duel with Zwerger (53rd). When Starkbaum left the ice, Perbix finally made it all clear on the empty net.
“Internet nerd. Avid student. Zombie guru. Tv enthusiast. Coffee advocate. Social media expert. Music geek. Professional food maven. Thinker. Troublemaker.”