Slovakia and Germany faced each other in the first game of day two at the 2026 World Junior Championship on Saturday, Dec. 27. It looked pretty even when the game started, but then Slovakia started to pull away a bit. They got a two-goal lead to end the first period and kept building it as the game went on. Germany tried to respond but couldn’t mount a comeback, and Slovakia took the 4-1 win.
That was Slovakia’s first win of this year’s tournament, while Germany has yet to get one. In this article, we’ll take a look at some takeaways for both team’s starting with Slovakia’s star of the game.
Slovakia’s Chrenko Stands Out
Slovakia got off to a strong start with two solid goals in the opening period of their game against Germany. Tomáš Chrenko scored both goals and showed his versatility as one was an even-strength goal while the second was on the power play; he also had four shots on goal in that period alone. Both goals were similar style; he was right in front of the net and ready to knock the puck in both times.
Chrenko scored a third goal later in the game that was originally given to his teammate, but it turned out he scored it and earned a natural hat trick that gave his team a 3-0 lead. That goal, he was at the corner of the net rather than right in front, but he still got the job done. Apart from Chrenko, another teammate of his stood out, and that was Adam Nemec, the younger brother of NHL player Šimon Nemec.
Nemec was originally awarded one of the goals, but it was given to Chrenko for his third. Regardless, Nemec assisted on the first two goals of the game, and if it hadn’t been for him, it’s likely those goals wouldn’t have happened. While the goal scorer is important, the person who sets it up is equally important and deserves recognition like Nemec, who’s been solid for Slovakia so far this tournament.
Slovakia’s Prádel Solid
While a team needs goal scorers to win games, they also need a strong goaltender between the pipes, and Michal Prádel proved that against Germany. He wasn’t tested a lot in the beginning as Slovakia outshot Germany 19-3, but as the game went on, he had a few more shots come his way that he had to be ready for. In the second, Germany outshot Slovakia 15-7 but couldn’t get any past Prádel.
Germany did sneak one past him at the beginning of the third, but he shut the door after that goal. That was a crucial moment where he could’ve allowed multiple, but he held strong and kept Germany to one goal. Overall, he made 34 saves on 35 shots, and Germany had some great chances that he stopped.
He didn’t play in Slovakia’s first game, but he was ready to go in the second, and after his performance, it’s likely he’ll get the next start as well. It’ll be interesting to see if Slovakia keeps up the rotation or if they’ll go back to Prádel for their next game.
Germany Couldn’t Capitalize
Germany didn’t have an overall bad game outside of getting one too many penalties, a problem that has hit multiple teams in this year’s tournament. They had plenty of chances to get on the scoreboard, but unfortunately for them, Slovakia’s goaltender was ready to make the stops, or the puck didn’t make it all the way to the net.
There were several times Germany turned the puck over because they passed too quickly. Instead of taking their time with the puck, they tried to rush and ended up losing the puck. In their next game, they have to try to slow it down and then make their pass rather than trying to rush things because that’s how they got in trouble.
Related: 3 Takeaways From Slovakia’s 3-2 Loss to Sweden at 2026 World Juniors
However, their biggest issue was their 14 minutes in penalties compared to Slovakia’s four minutes. They’ll have to stay out of the box if they hope to get in the win column, as their next games don’t get any easier.
Both Germany and Slovakia will have Sunday, Dec. 28, off and will be back in action on Monday, Dec. 29. Germany will face Sweden, while Slovakia will face the USA. It’ll be interesting to see if Germany can finally get in the win column and if Slovakia’s game will continue to improve.
