Team Latvia started their 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship (WJC) against this year’s host nation, Sweden. Head coach Artis Abols gave Deivs Rolovs the start in goal. Unfortunately, the Latvians didn’t get off to the start they’d hoped for and were beaten fairly convincingly by Sweden. The game would end up being a 6-0 win for the Swedes.
Latvia’s Special Teams Struggle Early
Less than a minute into the game, Emils Veckaktins got hit with a cross-check that launched him into the boards at an awkward angle. As a result, Elias Salomonsson, a Winnipeg Jets prospect, was given a game misconduct, and Latvia got a five-minute power play. Although they got some decent scoring chances, they were unable to capitalize on the power play and only recorded four shots over the five minutes.
Latvia then had their first penalty kill about halfway through the first period after Ignus Locmelis tried to clear the puck from in front of the net and hit it out of play. The delay of game penalty would prove costly. Anton Wahlberg would find the back of the net to give Sweden a 1-0 lead. A second penalty by Latvia, this time by Eriks Mateiko for tripping, resulted in a second goal for Sweden. Filip Bystedt, a San Jose Sharks prospect, got the puck past Rolovs and gave Sweden a 2-0 lead before the end of the first period.
A Major Lack of Discipline
Besides Latvia’s first penalty, it seems as if most of their penalties were not only obvious calls but completely unnecessary. Niks Fenenko’s two penalties in the second period were the most egregious. The last thing that any team needs is an obvious penalty when trailing. There was no chance that the official wouldn’t make the call on either play. It’s even worse when you factor in that Latvia had already conceded two power-play goals in the game. Luckily for them, they were able to kill off the first penalty successfully, but the odds certainly weren’t in their favor to do so.
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Meanwhile, Sweden scored on the second power play of the second period almost instantly. Fenenko’s roughing penalty basically put the final nail in the coffin for their chances to make a comeback. Sweden also scored on a delayed penalty, once again taken by Fenenko shortly after he got out of the box. If Latvia hopes to avoid relegation from the top flight of U20 hockey, they’ll need to improve their discipline moving forward.
Signs of Success for Latvia
Although Latvia lost this game fairly convincingly, there were signs that they could pull off an upset at some point in this tournament. For the most part, they were able to keep things competitive at even strength. Although Bystedt’s second goal for Sweden was listed as even-strength, it was the result of a delayed penalty, allowing them to pull their goaltender for the extra attacker. If they’re able to address the special teams and the amount of careless penalties they take, they can compete with any team in the tournament.
Rolovs’ numbers look terrible after this game, but he played better than the statistics show early on. In the first period, both goals were difficult for any goaltender to save. Wahlberg’s goal was a tip in front of the net, while Bystedt’s first of the night was the result of a pass across the slot, giving him a wide-open one-timer shot.
Related: 2024 Guide to the World Junior Championship
A 6-0 loss is never a great result, but the ability to keep things even during 5-on-5 play is a decent starting point for a team expected to finish near the bottom of the standings. If the Latvians hadn’t taken a lot of unnecessary and frankly pointless penalties, the score could’ve been much closer. Playing the host nation in the first game of the tournament didn’t make things easy for them, either, as Team Sweden had quite a bit of motivation entering the night. Latvia lost convincingly, but there are some positives they can take out of it as they look to improve against another difficult opponent, Canada.
